Huawei reportedly moved to appeal Sweden’s exclusion of the vendor from a forthcoming 5G auction, arguing the decision would not benefit customers or the country in general.

Reuters reported a Swedish Post and Telecom Authority (PTS) spokesperson had confirmed the appeal, which it would send to the administrative court in Stockholm to handle the case.

Kenneth Fredriksen, Huawei EVP, Central and East Europe and Nordic region, told Reuters it wanted a Swedish court to look at if “the decision has been taken through a proper process and according to the law”.

Sweden banned its country’s operators taking part in its 5G auction from using products made by Huawei and ZTE, as part of conditions set following a security assessment. In addition, the country said operators would also be required to strip out the vendors’ products by 1 January 2025, from existing infrastructure and in the core of their networks.

The country’s decision follows other European countries tightening rules around so called high risk vendors, following a US-led campaign which alleges such companies use their equipment to spy for the Chinese state. Huawei has denied the allegations.

Sweden’s 5G auction, which is due to start next week (10 November), will see Hi3G Access, Net4Mobility (a joint initiative by Tele2 and Telenor’s local units), Telia Sverige and Teracom Group bid for 5G-suitable spectrum in the 3.5GHz and 2.3GHz bands.

With Huawei’s exclusion, Sweden’s own Ericsson and fellow European rival Nokia are expected to benefit from the country’s pending 5G rollout.