Ukrainian telco Kyivstar announced that it has postponed the planned shutdown of its 3G network in Chernihiv due to increased shelling and power outages in the city.
Kyivstar had previously announced in August that it would redistribute its 2100-MHz frequencies from 3G to 4G on October 7 in Chernihiv and several cities and districts in the Kirovohrad and Sumy regions. The 3G shutdowns are part of Kyivstar’s strategy to modernise its 4G infrastructure and prepare for the launch of 5G.
Kyivstar has been encouraging 3G-only subscribers to migrate to 4G, but said on Tuesday that it was aware some of its subscribers in Chernihiv have not had time to switch to 4G SIM cards. The telco also said the transition to 4G in Chernihiv has been “complicated by current energy problems”.
According to a report in the Kyiv Post on Tuesday, Russian forces have been targeting energy infrastructure in the Chernihiv region, resulting in frequent outages in some areas as power company Chernihivoblenergo reroutes power to prioritize critical infrastructure and residential buildings to prevent a total blackout.
“In order not to create additional inconveniences and to ensure stable and affordable communication for subscribers who did not have time to replace a SIM card that does not support 4G with USIM, we are temporarily canceling the planned 3G shutdown,” Kyivstar said in a statement.
Kyivstar added that it will announce a new date for its 3G shutdown in Chernihiv “when the power supply situation becomes stable.”
