Germany Will Invest €1.1 Billion to Seal Mobile Gaps

Germany Will Invest €1.1 Billion to Seal Mobile Gaps
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Germany plans to invest around €1.1 billion to close mobile coverage gaps in the country by 2024. Its plans include building 5,000 masts through a public infrastructure company.

In an interview with Stuttgarter Zeitung, parliamentary state secretary at the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure Steffen Bilger said the investment will be provided through the country’s digital infrastructure fund to close almost all deadlocks in Germany. The newspaper stated the government has also set aside €5 million to launch a public infrastructure company next year that will deploy masts in areas where private companies do not operate now.

Germany’s Federal Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer has also reportedly pushed for faster approval procedures for the expansion of mobile infrastructure in the country, as approval procedures in 1,000 locations across the country are currently pending. The announcement came few days after the three biggest operators agreed to improve rural coverage across Germany with the construction of 6,000 radio masts.