Nokia has secured a €500 million ($584 million) loan from the European Union to fund its research and development of 5G technology.
The company has signed a transaction with the European Investment Bank (EIB) for the loan to accelerate its 5G R&D. The loan is supported by the European Fund for Strategic Investments, which is a key element of the EU's Juncker Plan to encourage higher investments in Europe.
The loan is expected to be dispersed at any time in the next 18 months, and will have an average maturity of five years after this date.
Nokia CFO Kristian Pullola said the investment demonstrates that the EIB shares Nokia's view that 5G technology has the potential to be revolutionary.
“This financing bolsters our 5G research efforts and continues the broader momentum we have already seen this year in terms of customer wins and development firsts, supporting our relentless drive to be a true leader in 5G - end-to-end."
He said Nokia's 5G portfolio will cover all the needs of an operator wishing to provide fully-converged fixed-mobile communications services for the 5G era.