Ukraine to Conduct Non-Public 5G Internet Trials in Lviv

Lifecell, one of Ukraine’s mobile operators, will conduct non-public 5G internet trials between Sept. 9 and Dec. 7 in Lviv to explore the feasibility of future 5G implementation across Ukraine.

Ukraine’s National Commission for State Regulation of Electronic Communications, Radio Frequency Spectrum and the Provision of Postal Services (NKEK) made the announcement on Wednesday.

It said the trial would simulate real-world conditions, using test (non-public) SIM cards and test terminals, with proposed measures to “avoid harmful interference, electromagnetic interference, risk to the health and safety of people, domestic animals.”

“There is testing of 5G [new radio] NR technology in conditions close to real ones, testing of the capabilities of the network core in terms of readiness for the implementation of 5G NR technology on a large scale, testing the compatible operation of 5G NR and LTE/UMTS/GSM technologies, studying the capabilities of terminal equipment (smartphones, 5G routers, etc.), gaining practical experience in supporting 5G technology from terminal equipment available on the market,” read a document attached to the announcement.

The trial will also take place in laboratory conditions.

In May, representatives from Ukraine’s Ministry of Digital Transformation told Kyiv Post at a local conference that implementing 5G networks across Ukraine would only be possible after the war, adding that Ukraine had a “very neutral opinion” about using foreign 5G vendors in the future, including those from China.

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The 5G technology, as opposed to the 4G networks being used in Ukraine, presents more than 10 times the mobile internet speed and can open up a variety of applications, where its low latency and high network capacity can help process a large amount of data at once and foster artificial intelligence (AI) usage, for example.

Being able to transmit a large amount of data in real time can also have positive effects on military applications.

As reported by RBC Ukraine, work for 5G in Ukraine started in 2017 when former President Petro Poroshenko signed a decree on its introduction. In 2021, testing began. The technology was set to be launched in 2022, before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.