India’s 5G expansion to pick up in 2026; Nokia, Ericsson expect strong rebound

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After several subdued quarters, India’s telecom sector is gearing up for its next phase of 5G expansion, with global network vendors Nokia and Ericsson expecting revenue growth to rebound in 2026. The momentum will be driven by large-scale network capacity upgrades, deeper rural rollouts, and operators’ push to monetise 5G use cases.

Global majors such as Nokia and Ericsson — which power the 4G and 5G networks of all three private operators — foresee stronger demand as telcos accelerate deployments, particularly across rural and semi-urban regions.

Operators are also preparing for the nationwide rollout of standalone (SA) 5G architecture, which enables advanced enterprise and consumer applications such as network slicing, differentiated connectivity, and industrial automation.

With 5G coverage already at about 80%, operators will aim to close the remaining gap and densify urban networks, executives at these telecom companies said. Compared to 4G, India still needs around 150,000 additional 5G sites—mostly in rural areas—to achieve comparable reach.

Andres Vicente, Head of Southeast Asia, Oceania, and India at Ericsson, told Moneycontrol that Indian operators will need to adopt standalone 5G, implement slicing capabilities in their core networks, and expand mid-band coverage. “We are very optimistic about 2026 as telcos deploy SA 5G and densify networks to enable new use cases.”

Airtel, despite flagging 5G monetisation-related challenges, is progressively expanding its 5G coverage across India and taking a measured, demand-led approach to deploying standalone 5G — the next-generation network architecture that operates independently of 4G cores, Airtel Vice Chairman and Managing Director Gopal Vittal said during the Q2 earnings call
“We’re now in the process of transitioning our 5G networks towards 5G Advanced by introducing dual NSA plus SA mode and migrating our FWA users to the same. For the mobile network, pilots are underway for the 5G dual mode in a couple of circles, and we plan to make it commercial in the coming months as traffic on our 5G network grows,” he said.

FWA needs more 5G capacity

The rapid growth of 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) subscribers is adding pressure on telcos to boost network capacity through additional 5G sites. With 5G coverage already at around 80%, operators now aim to bridge the remaining gap and boost capacity in urban areas.

“If we compare 4G coverage with that of 5G, we still need to deploy around 150,000 sites, most of them in rural and remote areas,” Vicente noted.

Echoing a similar outlook, Tarun Chhabra, Head of Nokia India, said that while 2025 will likely remain a cautious year, the industry is positioned for steady growth led by accelerating data consumption, higher 5G smartphone penetration, and wider FWA adoption.

“I assume 2026 will be better than 2025. Only around 60% of potential 5G sites have been deployed so far, so about 40% more deployment is possible as utilisation rises,” Chhabra told Moneycontrol. “2026 will be a year of stronger deployment and monetisation. Wherever the growth happens, be it fixed or wireless, Nokia will be part of it.”

According to Chhabra, all major telecom operators are continuing to invest in both 4G and 5G, based on coverage and device mix in different regions.

Densification, he said, is “a continuous process” and a natural outcome of growing data demand. Nokia, one of India’s key network vendors, continues to roll out new sites for all its operator partners, including Vodafone Idea, Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio.

Chhabra said telcos’ next wave of expansion will increasingly target rural and semi-urban markets, aligned with the National Telecom Policy’s goals of expanding broadband coverage.

“The policy aims to raise broadband penetration from 46% to 80% and achieve 100% Gram Panchayat connectivity through 4G and 5G. That growth in fiber and fixed broadband will also be significant for us,” he said.

5G Use Cases

Both gear makers and analysts believe Indian telcos are not just expanding coverage but also enhancing network functionality to enable ecosystem-driven innovation.

“Telcos will begin to expose network capabilities and position the network as a platform for developers. Millions of developers will build precise, high-value use cases across industries, creating indirect monetisation opportunities,” Vicente said. “That’s the real way to monetise 5G — through innovation built on top of the network.”

He added that other markets are already experimenting with differentiated 5G services. “In Singapore, users can pay slightly more for higher speeds and priority access during congestion. In Australia, operators like Telstra are offering enterprises dedicated slices and service-level agreements (SLAs) for reliable, tailored connectivity,” Vicente said.