The Department of Home Affairs has launched a tender process to an operator for the 5G lab

The government of Australia is moving ahead with its plans to set up a lab with the main aim of checking the interoperability and security of 5G equipment and protocols, as well as future 6G systems.

The facility, dubbed “Secure G” Connectivity Test Lab, had been initially announced as part of the country’s digital economy strategy through 2030, which was unveiled back in 2021.

Now, the Department of Home Affairs has launched a tender process to an operator for the lab, for at least an initial two-year period. Home Affairs noted that the delivery of the contract could be provided by a single company or through a prime contracting model.

“Under the digital economy strategy, the Department of Home Affairs is leading the establishment of the ‘Secure G’ Connectivity Test Lab. The lab is a key part of efforts to support the Commonwealth and industry understand the security needs of emerging telecommunications networks, and inform corresponding policy development efforts,” the tender documents read.

The primary objective of the test lab is to promote the security, resilience and diversity of emerging and future telecommunications technologies. The Australian government said that the test lab aims to provide a commercially-neutral facility for industry to test the security and interoperability of the equipment, protocols, standards and software that underpin 5G and emerging networks and technologies, such as Open Radio Access Networks (O-RAN). The test lab will also support network diversification by reducing barriers of entry for new providers to enter the market, the government added.

In the tender documents, the Department of Home Affairs said it wants vendors, service providers and researchers to test equipment and protocols in the lab “in return for providing key information and findings to the Commonwealth.”

The security of 5G networks has been on the government’s radar since it decided to effectively ban Chinese vendor Huawei and ZTE from taking part in the rollout of 5G networks in Australia back in 2018. The government decided the implementation of this ban over security allegations.