India’s Vodafone Idea outlined plans to finally deploy 5G service, aiming to invest INR57.2 billion ($685 million) to take the service to 40 per cent of its revenue base in 24 to 30 months, following fresh fundraising, Financial Express reported.

CEO Akshay Moondra stated once funding is secured, it will submit orders to vendors for 5G equipment, the newspaper wrote.

The operator plans to install 10,000 5G sites across 17 service areas in the current fiscal year (ending 31 March 2025) and another 12,000 in fiscal 2026.

The company will raise INR180 billion via a follow-on public offering this week and another INR25 billion through debt financing, it stated in a stock market filing.

Rivals Jio Reliance and Bharti Airtel claimed near nationwide 5G coverage in October 2023, with each signing up more than 50 million users of the new service six months ago.