BT and EE have agreed a new contract with the Home Office to continue the development of the Emergency Services Network (ESN).
The mobile services agreement is valued at up to £1.85 billion and to run for seven years and three months from the expiry of the existing deal with EE at the end of this year. There is also an option for a one-year extension.
The contract award notice also indicates that users of the ESN, which is due to replace the existing Airwave communications network for emergency services, will be expected to have moved onto it by 2029.
This follows a series of delays in the development of the ESN. Wok began on it in 2015, with an original schedule to be in place by 2020, but was reset in 2018 after a series of technical problems.
The services covered by the contract include ensuring the network coverage and that users can access the radio network with 4G, evolving into 5G standalone (SA), including for air to ground and marine operations up to 12 nautical miles offshore. They will also extend into specific locations including the London Underground.
The award notice said that an alternative mobile service supplier would not be able to meet the technical requirements within the timeframe. This is related to the need to build a dedicated 4G/5GSA network that could meet the demands of availability, resilience and security.
BT and EE will have responsibilities including the provision of technical interfaces for connections to the network, support services for optimising its use, deployment and testing services, and protection of coverage at critical locations.