China Mobile’s 2027 Procurement Plan Exceeds 500 Billion Yuan

By Sophie Lindqvist

China Mobile expects 2027 procurement above 500 billion yuan, chairman Chen Zhongyue said on Nov. 6 at the 2026 Mobile Network Conference. The plan assigns more than 100 billion yuan to computing infrastructure and more than 100 billion yuan to terminals and devices.

China Mobile earmarks more than 10 billion yuan for the retail channel, including a refresh of 10,000 stores. DigiTimes put the total at about $75.1 billion and the computing slice at roughly one-fifth. These are procurement plans, not signed contracts, completed purchases or realized capacity.

What does Chen expect from the plan?

“Computing investment is the biggest increment this year,” Chen said. He said intelligent computing capacity will keep doubling over the next two years. That is a roadmap rather than a disclosed capacity figure: the speech gave no starting accelerator count, current installed-computing total or annual deployment schedule.

He argued that every economic form needs infrastructure suited to it and that a new intelligent economy requires new infrastructure. The claim sets spending against a commercial test. Chen said computing infrastructure “should be judged not just by investment but by output.” His speech linked that spending to economic output but did not define output or provide utilization, revenue, cost or return-on-investment data for the planned infrastructure.

How large are the planned AI computing parks?

China Mobile began construction this year on three gigawatt-scale AI computing parks and plans two more in 2027, reaching seven. The plan gives all seven a standardized modular design with high-density liquid cooling. The announcement did not specify the measurement behind “gigawatt-scale” or provide a total power draw, so the label cannot yet support a precise capacity comparison.

The carrier's computing hub in Zhongwei, Ningxia, spans 170,000 square meters. Chen said construction took three months and production started five months after work began. His timelines indicate rapid deployment, but his remarks give no installed accelerator total or utilization rate for the hub.

Demand has also risen, on Chen's account. He said AI-generated content drove a fivefold increase in traffic. He also said mobile data traffic grew 18% this year, twice last year's rate. No baseline period or traffic unit accompanied the fivefold figure, and neither traffic metric establishes how much revenue the new computing assets will earn.

What does the supernode tender show?

On Sept. 29, China Mobile opened a centralized tender for 2026-2027 “new-generation AI supernode” equipment. The package lists:

• 20,480 accelerator cards
• 448 RoCE switches
• 82 storage sets

An Oct. 28 notice shortlisted five bidders:

• Huakun Zhenyu
• Baode Computer
• Huaqi Zhihui, a Dahua Technology subsidiary
• Baixin Information
• Shenzhou Kuntai, a Digital China subsidiary

The tender carries an estimated value of 11.6 billion to 11.7 billion yuan. That estimate is not an award value. The Oct. 28 notice names no winner and gives no contract price, delivery schedule or chip supplier. Those omissions leave hardware procurement tied to an open selection, not confirmed shipments, a disclosed award or a binding delivery schedule for any named bidder.

Can domestic vendors deliver the build-out?

The disclosed hardware purchases come from Chinese vendors. The bidder list does not identify which chipmakers supply the accelerators. Chen did not name chip suppliers in his Nov. 6 speech. A card count alone does not prove installed computing performance or reveal supplier allocation.

The planned seven parks and capacity doubling depend on converting procurement plans into deployable systems. Chen's own standard was output, not spending. Without firm awards, prices and delivery dates, the 500-billion-yuan plan remains an intention, not an operating result.

The next commercial test is whether the 2026-2027 supernode tender converts into firm awards, prices and scheduled deliveries. Until then, China Mobile's planned doubling of intelligent computing capacity remains tied to procurement promises rather than proven output.