Harbin, capital of China’s northernmost Heilongjiang province, will complete the construction of 3,918 new 5G stations in the first half of 2020, according to information recently released by the Harbin commission of industry and information.
 
The augmented 5G network is expected to achieve full signal coverage of the city’s urban areas, counties and important transport hubs.
 
Local officials said that at present, 2,262 stations have been completed and put into use, taking it to 58 percent of the target.
 
The remaining stations on the construction plan are estimated to be finished on June 30.
 
Officials said that theoretically at its peak the 5G network can reach 10 GBps, 10 times the peak rate of a 4G network. A 5G network features a large broadband coverage, higher speed and lower latency.
 
It is expected to provide strong technology support in such fields as transportation, security, industry, medical and education.
 
Construction of Harbin’s 5G stations is divided into three phases.
 
The first phase focused on dense urban areas such as central business districts, universities, hospitals, large venues and transport hubs. Around 500 5G stations were built in the second half of 2019.
 
Officials said the 5G rollout is currently in the early stages of the second phase of 5G station construction. This phase aims to increase the scale of the construction of digital room sub-systems and expand 5G coverage.
 
It is anticipated that 7,030 new 5G stations will be constructed by the end of this year.
 
In 2021, Harbin will gradually complete the planning and construction of the third stage of 5G stations. The third stage focuses on deep coverage in urban areas and on-demand coverage in rural areas, accelerating seamless 5G coverage.