Most ministers rejected the 500 -meter requirement between towers; The decision divides the telecommunications sector
The (Supreme Federal Court) concluded on Tuesday (24.JUN.2025) the judgment of the ADI (direct unconstitutionality action) and decided, by majority, not to endorse the injunction that restored the obligation of a minimum distance of 500 meters among mobile towers. With this, the validity of Article 10 of da, which revoked the spacing rule, is maintained.
The action was filed by (Brazilian Association of Infrastructure for Telecommunications), which questioned the revocation approved during the Jair Bolsonaro government. The theme was in the virtual session of the Supreme started on June 13.
As the ministers voted:
- In favor of the 500 meter rule: Flávio Dino (Rapporteur), Dias Toffoli and Nunes Marques;
- Against the rule: Roberto Barroso (president), Gilmar Mendes, Cristiano Zanin, André Mendonça, Alexandre de Moraes, Edson Fachin, Cármen Lúcia and Luiz Fux.
Sector division
The process divides the telecommunications sector, with divergences between mobile operators and companies owners of Torres infrastructure.
Representing the operators, defended her the elimination of minimal spacing. To the Poder360the president of the entity, Marcos Ferrari, stressed that the revocation brought important advances.
According to him, before the change, the market was dominated by few companies, which held about 80% of the infrastructure. With the elimination of the minimum spacing rule, the competition increased significantly, reflecting on the drop in contract prices by almost 90%.
He also said that 5G technology requires a much larger density of antennas compared to 4G, making it unfeasible to apply the old 500 -meter spacing rule between towers.
“5G is a technology that requires more antennas than 4G, 4 to 5 times more”he declared.
In addition, he said that infrastructure sharing is always the 1st option of operators because it is more efficient and economical. When it is not possible, the installation of new towers should be allowed to ensure network expansion.
The previous legislation, according to him, created outdated technical and legal barrier, which does not follow the evolution of telecommunications technologies. With the revocation, the market became more competitive, directly benefiting consumers with more options and better prices.
Contrary arguments
The president of the APRINCINTEL, Luciano Stutz, Poder360 that the injunction that maintains the minimum spacing rule of 500 meters between towers is critical to the urban organization and the efficiency of the telecommunications sector.
“The most direct consequence is that tomorrow can start to happen a lot of tower on the tower side”he said. He pointed out that this represents an urban setback and can turn the towers into “Public Enemies”similar to the rejection of posts and wires.
See how antennas can stay in cities in Brazil
290 Floriano Lima Street, Arinos/MG
290 Floriano Lima Street, Arinos/MG
Rua Alyrio Hugne de Matos, 33, Cuiabá, Mato Grosso
Rua Alyrio Hugne de Matos, 33, Cuiabá, Mato Grosso
Conceição da Barra/ES
Conceição da Barra/ES
Rua Parigot de Souza, Terra Roxa/PR
Rua Parigot de Souza, Terra Roxa/PR
In addition to the aesthetic issue, he said the measure can delay the advance of 5G coverage in the country. The construction of unnecessary towers near each other represents waste of financial and natural resources, as each tower costs about R $ 500 thousand to be built.
“When you put money to lift one tower on the side of the other, you are leaving in locations without coverage, especially in rural areas, peripheries and small villages that do not yet have a cell phone signal.”he declared.
Stutz pointed to the environmental impact associated with the excessive use of steel and concrete in the construction of these structures and questioned the arguments presented by the operators against the distance rule.
“Many of these antennas can be installed in alternative locations, such as tops or facades of buildings and poles, which are not affected by the 500 meter rule, valid only for towers.”these.
Data from UI (International Telecommunications Union), UN organ, indicate that the 5g sign of a 40 -meter tower can reach up to 1.5 km, making it unnecessary to build very close towers. “The technical arguments used to justify revocation do not match the reality of technology”declared.
Understand the case
In the 2000s, with the popularization of cell phones in Brazil, cities began to live with a phenomenon nicknamed “Torres Palite” – Structures installed side by side by operators. The 2009 sought to order the sector by demanding 500 meters away between the towers, reducing visual pollution.
In 2021, in the Government (PL), this limit was revoked with the approval of Law 14.173. The change was inserted via the rapporteur amendment in the processing of MP 1018, which dealt with the exemption of taxes on satellite internet. The change was classified by critics such as a jabuti, because it was not related to the original theme of the provisional measure.
The Abintel then joined the ADI 7708, claiming that the revocation had a vice of origin and would have negative effects on urban planning, the expansion of 5G and the environment.
