The NSW Government says it will spend $50 million on a plan for mobile tower sharing. 

The NSW Government has announced it will pay Optus, Telstra, TPG Telecom, BAI Communications, Field Solutions Group (FSG), Infrastructure Logic, NEC and Pivotel Mobile to overcome the “patchwork” of coverage created by a “one tower, one carrier model”, according to the state’s deputy premier Paul Toole. 

The companies won a tender earlier this year, which asked participants to “work collaboratively to identify a range of active sharing solutions that could be implemented in priority regional NSW blackspot locations”.

“This may require organisations, that would typically work in competition, to work together to design proposed active sharing solution/s,” the tender stated.

Mr Toole says the government’s plan for network sharing “will see major telecommunications providers partner with us to design sharing solutions that will boost competition, provide consumers with more choice and improve mobile coverage where people live and work”. 

The scheme involves a $50 million, 14-week design process, which will be followed by invitations for funding requests to roll out the new network sharing solutions in the second half of 2022.  

A broader rollout supported by an additional $250 million from the state government will follow.