O2 deploys 500th advanced mobile site as part of £700m network upgrade

Virgin Media O2 has announced it has reached the halfway point in its rollout of next-generation mobile infrastructure after switching on its 500th advanced mobile site, part of a £700 million investment in its UK mobile network.

The latest “Giga Site”, located in North Elgin, forms part of O2’s mobile transformation plan, which aims to deploy 1,000 of these hubs across the UK this year to improve mobile coverage, capacity and network performance.

Giga Sites combine low, mid and high-band spectrum with Massive MIMO technology, a 5G technology which uses hundreds of small antennas to connect multiple users simultaneously, to increase network capacity and support growing demand for mobile data.

According to O2, each site provides up to ten times the capacity of its previous mobile infrastructure, enabling more customers to stream content, make video calls and access online services in busy locations.

The operator said the rollout is designed to increase capacity in areas where demand is highest as mobile data usage continues to grow, driven by streaming services, social media, gaming, remote working, and AI-powered apps.

The Giga Site programme is part of O2’s wider £700 million mobile transformation plan, which also includes deploying new mobile sites, expanding small cell infrastructure, upgrading 4G and 5G networks, introducing greater automation and making additional spectrum available.

Virgin Media O2 said the investment has already contributed to improvements in network performance.

“As customers use more data than ever before, these cutting-edge sites are helping us add capacity where it’s needed most and deliver a faster, more reliable experience across the UK,” said Jeanie York, chief technology officer at Virgin Media O2. “We’re not slowing down, with more towns and cities set to benefit throughout the year as we continue investing around £2 million per day in our mobile network.”