(Adds BT)
LONDON, July 9 (Reuters) - Vodafone and BT
said they would need a minimum of five years to remove equipment
made by Huawei from their British networks, with
Vodafone putting the cost of doing so in the "single figure
billions" of pounds range.
Andrea Dona, head of networks Vodafone UK, told a committee
of lawmakers the operator needed to have a "sensible time scale"
of several years to implement any further Huawei restrictions,
with a minimum transitional plan spanning five years.
Rival BT told the same committee it needed a minimum of five
years, and ideally seven, to remove Huawei from its network.
BT was already trialing switching some network sites from
Huawei to other vendors, its chief technology officer Howard
Watson said.
Britain granted Huawei a limited role in its future 5G
networks in January, but ministers have since said the
introduction of U.S. sanctions could have a significant impact
on its ability to securely supply crucial pieces of networking
equipment.
As a result, Britain is again reviewing what role Huawei
should play in its telecom networks. Huawei told the same
committee it was too early to quantify what impact the sanctions
would have on its operations, and no hasty decisions should be
made.
(Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by Kate Holton)
Vodafone (VOD)
BT (BT.A)
