Procurement of dark fiber and optical spectrum for the new research network in Norway. Strategies and learnings#

Olaf Schjeldrup (Sikt)

• Why: Physical WAN infrastructure strategy with real numbers and two years of negotiation scar tissue — squarely relevant to anyone whose job includes DC/WAN interconnect economics. Norway's NREN renewal covers ~13,000 km of renewed optical long-haul topology across punishing geography (3,000 km north–south, 103,000 km of coastline), with geopolitical tension explicitly cited as a driver for higher validated redundancy.
• What: Requirements: national coverage, terabit capacities with a preference order of dark fiber > optical spectrum (1–1.2 THz, flexigrid, license-free) > waves; 20-year IRU matching Open Line System lifetime; fiber sensing and bidirectional time-and-frequency transfer capability; extra fiber pairs reserved for research (quantum, sensing). Process: RFI spring 2023, RFQ end-2023, award criteria 60% quality / 40% TCO, 10 tenderers (3 hybrid fiber+spectrum, 7 fiber-only), negotiated procedure running over two years with six offer/negotiation phases, BAFO May 2025, award January 2026 to 8 sub-providers, main contracts May 2026, rollout 2026–28 — with "huge cost savings, increased optical footprint and redundancy."
• How: The evaluation complexity (choosing one path alters preferences for many others) was made manageable by dividing the country into 5 regions, evaluating inter-regional legs with add/drops at essential locations, backed by purpose-built evaluation models. Tactical tips: dark-fiber monopolies are consolidating and prices are rising on datacenter-industry demand; asking for both fiber and spectrum widens real competition; spectrum providers with greenfield DWDM plans will install L-band sensing and bidirectional T&F channels for you; multi-subprovider strategies cost more effort but save money and add diversity.
• Where applicable: Norwegian market and geography, but the procurement playbook (competition structure, evaluation decomposition, IRU terms, research fiber pairs) transfers to any large fiber buyer. Explicitly org-specific in outcomes; the strategy is the export.