Belgian full-service provider Proximus has agreed access to ORES’s network of electricity poles to support the deployment of its open multi-gigabit fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) network in the Wallonia region. Proximus claims the agreement will bring the benefits of fibre to homes and businesses more quickly while minimising disruption to residents.
ORES is the leading Walloon distribution network operator and manages the electricity and natural gas networks of 200 of Wallonia’s 262 communes. The signing of this new agreement follows a pilot project carried out in Bouge in 2021, during which two kilometres of optical fibre installed on 50 ORES poles were used to connect 177 homes to fibre. Proximus claims the results of this pilot project, which will be extended to more than 1,000 homes over the coming weeks, were highly encouraging. It believes the new deal can play an important role in accelerating the rollout of fibre in Wallonia and will help the company exceed its target of 70% national coverage in 2028 and beyond.
Proximus Group CEO Guillaume Boutin commented: ‘This new agreement between Proximus and ORES is really good news for Wallonia, because it will give us additional ways of setting up the open multi-gigabit infrastructure which is essential in order to ensure Walloon competitiveness … We now hope that we’ll very soon be able to sign the same types of agreement with other electric grid operators in both Flanders and Wallonia, in order to facilitate digitalisation and ensure that our regions are competitive.’