Zain Saudi Arabia (Zain KSA) has signed a three-year deal with Nokia to roll out 5G network in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The network will use the 2.6 GHz and 3.5 GHz spectrum and Nokia’s massive Multiple Input Multiple Output (mMIMO) solutions.

The solution is expected to deliver enhanced network capacity, coverage, and improved downlink and uplink speeds.

Nokia will also supply Nokia AirScale radio platform to enhance efficiency and scale as needed.

In addition, the deal will introduce E-Band microwave in certain areas to allow for ultra-high-capacity backhaul networks.

Nokia 5G Anyhaul, Nokia Wavence’s E-band microwave radio with multi-frequency carrier aggregation, will support multi-gigabit capacities and low-latency microwave transport.

The deal also includes Nokia NetGuard Security Management and Nokia services that cover network planning, integration, implementation, project management, logistics and technical support.

Eng. Sultan Abdulaziz AlDeghaither, CEO of Zain KSA, said,  “Zain Saudi is a pioneer in introducing next-gen telecoms services and with this 5G deployment we continue that tradition as we will launch a wide range of new applications and services for our customers.”

Amr K. El Leithy, head of the Middle East and Africa market at Nokia, said, “This contract, which includes 5G RAN, backhaul, security and services, demonstrates the breadth of our full-portfolio strengths and depth of global expertise in deploying these next-generation projects.”

Nokia has won 43 commercial 5G deals with operators around the world. Most recently Nokia signed a deal with China Mobile for its mMIMO technology for enabling 5G.