Ukrainian telecom operator JSC Ukrtelecom and European ICT vendor and solutions provider Iskratel have signed a deal of €12m ($14.24m) to expand Ukraine’s fibre optic network.
The three-year network expansion programme — financed by Ukrtelecom, Iskratel and its financial partners — provides more than 300 locations in various Ukrainian regions with gigabit-capable connectivity. The Passive Optical Network (PON) technology will potentially offer connectivity to 1.3m people and 530,000 homes.
Commenting on the deal, Željko Puljić, CEO of Iskratel, said: “The joint programme between Iskratel and Ukrtelecom is playing an increasingly important role in the rollout of broadband internet in Ukraine. This collaboration continues the long-term partnership between our two companies in the development of fibre-optical access in the country that now amounts to €25m ($29.66m).”
Addressing both rural and urban areas in the country, the project targets the rollout of new fibre-optical networks. Modern certified telecommunications equipment, that is assembled in Slovenia at Iskratel’s production centres enables customers to gain access to speeds of up to 1 Gbit/s, IPTV and other IP-based services.
Yuriy Kurmaz, CEO of Ukrtelecom, added: “Ukrtelecom is a nationwide telecommunications company with the largest geographical coverage and we continue in our mission of bridging the digital divide across Ukraine. Working with Iskratel will boost our contribution to the development of Internet access in Ukraine.”
Last year, with a total investment of approximately EUR 7m ($8.30m), Iskratel and Ukrtelecom announced its two-year network construction project and connected more than 200 localities in 13 Ukrainian regions. Previously, Ukrtelecom and Iskratel rolled out fibre broadband for 300 localities in the project, launched in 2019.
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