By Jess Jones
British telecoms giant BT has missed the deadline to strip Huawei technology from its core network, meaning it could soon face a fine.
BT was supposed to have replaced any Huawei equipment in its core network by 31 December 2023, but some still remains in its 2G and 3G services, the firm has admitted.
These account for less than one per cent of total traffic and BT is working to fix them.
“All 4G and 5G data sessions and voice calls are now delivered by non-Huawei core equipment – meaning that over 99 percent of all core traffic is now being served by non-Huawei kit,” a BT spokesperson said.
The ban was implemented by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson back in July 2020 over concerns that using the Chinese company’s products posed a risk to national security.
BT, which previously said it has lost £500 due to the cost of stripping out all the old tech and replacing it, is not the only telco to be affected.
Earlier this year, Vodafone UK boss Ahmed Essam told City A.M. that the Huawei decision “definitely” had an impact on the firm’s rollout of 5G.
Although Vodafone UK does not have Huawei in its core – the brain of the network – the company still has to comply with the regulation to remove any Huawei tech from its public networkby the end of 2027.
“A lot of operational capacity and funding went into the swap cost,” said Essam, “and, rather than upgrading [the network], it went into a full swap, which takes a bit longer.”
Ofcom is due to report on the progress of Huawei removal by the end of March this year. Following this, media secretary Lucy Frazer will make a decision on whether a proportionate fine will be issued.
It could amount to 10 per cent of annual turnover or £100,000 per day in the case of a “continuing contravention”.
“Government is responsible for setting and enforcing the rules requiring certain telecoms companies to remove Huawei equipment from their networks. Ofcom’s role is to gather information on companies’ progress and report this to government,” an Ofcom spokesperson said.
A spokesperson for the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology said it continues to “work with operators to remove Huawei technology as quickly as possible while minimising disruption for consumers.”
