Luxembourg's 1st Public 5G Projects to Launch in January

The Department of Media, Telecommunications and Digital Policy (Service des médias et des communications - SMC) of Luxembourg's Ministry of State has announced the launch of the first public 5G projects, scheduled for January 2021.

The SMC launched its call for 5G projects in 2019 with the aim of encouraging projects with significant socio-economic added value as well as research and innovation projects in Luxembourg that collect data on emitted electromagnetic waves. A total of 29 projects were submitted.

After analysis and selection of the projects by a committee of international experts as well as the 5G interministerial commission, the project leaders were contacted regarding public co-financing.

The SMC monitored projects with a scientific or social impact, including the first five projects to be launched in January 2021:

- "5G-EMIT" from the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST): this project seeks to develop a 5G deployment monitoring platform aimed at facilitating the adoption and sustainability of 5G in Luxembourg. The objective is to measure and monitor the intensity of the electric fields coming from the base stations of mobile telephony, as well as to provide the necessary elements at the level of measurement methodology, computer applications, simulations and mathematical models in order to adapt existing tools to the many challenges of 5G technology. The project also aims to define electric field simulation models that can provide clear and understandable elements to be presented in the context of commodo application files.

- "MICRO 5G" from the Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust (SnT) of the University of Luxembourg: this project aims to research reliable communications at very low latency and Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) in the context of the deployment and support of drone services using 5G frequencies. It is expected to contribute to a significant change in the field of mobile telecommunications.

- "IRANATA" from the SnT of the University of Luxembourg: this project aims to assess the impact of interference from active antenna systems by taking concrete measures to resolve the phenomena related to intra and inter-system interference. It also aims to develop a 3D coverage map and radiation boundary framework using drones to produce a 3D image of the radiation.

- “Smart Water Eislek” from the Distribution d'Eau des Ardennes (DEA) union: this project aims to develop an Internet of Things (IoT) system with 5G communication which consists of sensors, 5G communication and a web visualisation for data analysis. With the data collected, it is planned to reduce drinking water leaks and to better assess the water supply. 

- "Waldbillig gëtt Digital" from the municipality of Waldbillig: this project aims to improve the digitilisation of the municipality of Waldbillig by means of information totems for residents and the development of a “smart metering” application for water management. During the project, the deployment of a fixed wireless access network is planned in order to connect households currently located in an area of ​​insufficient coverage.

Luxinnovation monitored projects with an economic purpose, which must be evaluated by the Ministry of the Economy in order to potentially obtain state aid in compliance with the conditions defined by law. A first positive decision following this procedure was taken in favour of POST Luxembourg's “POST 5G Secure Experience” project, which aims to find intrusion detection solutions and their development via a 5G telecommunications security platform aimed at protecting users and the POST Luxembourg telecom network more generally.

Projects have an average duration of two years. Each project is supported by a monitoring committee, made up of representatives selected according to the nature of the project. Electromagnetic field measurements will also support these projects.