Spark confirms signing of C-band spectrum agreement

Spark New Zealand Limited
ARBN 050 611 277 Spark City, 167 Victoria Street West, Private Bag 92028, Auckland, New Zealand




MARKET RELEASE – FRIDAY, 12 MAY 2023

Spark confirms signing of C-band spectrum agreement

Spark today announced it has signed an agreement with the Crown for a direct allocation of C-band mobile
spectrum under a new model where the revenue is directly invested into accelerated mobile network upgrades
that benefit provincial and rural New Zealand.

As announced in October last year, the terms of the agreement provide Spark with long-term spectrum
management rights to 80 MHz of 3.5 GHz (or C-band) spectrum from 1 July 2023, which will be used in Spark’s
ongoing roll out of 5G services.

In return, Spark will invest in extending rural connectivity and 5G services to provincial New Zealand, both via
the Rural Connectivity Group and through an acceleration of its own 5G roll out.

Spark will invest an additional $24 million in funding to the Rural Connectivity Group (RCG) between 2023 and
2025, which will support the expansion of mobile coverage further into rural New Zealand and address mobile
black spots on state highways.

Spark has also committed to accelerating deployment of its 5G network to 27 sites in 25 regional towns using
the allocated C-band spectrum that it would not otherwise have built under its existing commercial deployment
plans.

Spark CEO Jolie Hodson says, “When you consider the challenges we are facing as a country, there is an
important role for technology to play in helping us do things differently. We want to support the creation of high-
tech solutions that improve productivity, efficiency, and sustainability across our economy, and the rollout of 5G
is a critical enabler of this. In addition to our investment in spectrum, we are committing $40-$60 million to the
development of 5G Standalone over the next three years, which will unlock new services and support business
innovation in New Zealand.

“We are also pleased to see spectrum allocation revenue directly invested into connectivity in provincial and
rural New Zealand. When we combine the commitment we have made through this spectrum agreement with
our broader 5G rollout plans, our ambition is to expand 5G connectivity to all towns with a population of more
than 1,500 people by the end of June 2026. We are really pleased to finalise this agreement with Government,
which provides us with the certainty we need to continue investing in 5G and delivering these connectivity
benefits to Aotearoa New Zealand.”


Authorised by:
Alexa Preston
Finance Lead Partner – Group Performance and Investor Relations


For more information contact

For media queries please contact:
Althea Lovell
Corporate Relations Partner
(64) 21 222 2992
Althea.Lovell@spark.co.nz


For investor queries please contact:
Alexa Preston
Finance Lead Partner – Group Performance and Investor
Relations
(64) 21 997 902
Alexa.Preston@spark.co.nz

About Spark

Spark New Zealand Limited
ARBN 050 611 277 Spark City, 167 Victoria Street West, Private Bag 92028, Auckland, New Zealand



Spark is New Zealand's largest telecommunications and digital services company, with a purpose to help all of
New Zealand win big in a digital world. Spark provides mobile, broadband, and digital services to millions of New
Zealanders and thousands of New Zealand businesses.
www.sparknz.co.nz