Ultra-Fast Broadband: The tender with temporary contractors OTE and Grid has been completed – Terna Energy

With the 221 / 15.02.2022 Decision of the Minister of State and Digital Government Kyriakos Pierrakakis, the respective minutes of the Committee for the Execution / Evaluation of the Results of the International Electronic Competition were approved with the procedure of the Competitive Dialogue Broadband ULTRA-FAST BROADBAND “. In this way, the tender process of the project was completed and temporary contractors for the seven geographical zones (LOTs) of project implementation, defined by the relevant call, emerged as follows:

OTE SA: Geographical Zones 1, 3 and 7

Union of Companies TERNA ENERGIAKI SA / GRID TELECOMS SA: Geographical Zones 2, 4, 5 and 6

After the completion of the tender process, the implementation of the project is expected to begin in 2022.

The project is a large-scale public intervention to accelerate the country’s digital transformation, but also to promote cohesion policy, as the project will be implemented mainly in semi-urban and rural areas, which were not included in the private investment plans. It is characteristic that the project will cover, among others, 2,950 remote settlements. Specifically, through the infrastructure that will be implemented within the project, it is estimated that more than 837,500 households and businesses (over 18% of the country as a whole) will be able to access the internet at ultra-high speed (100 Mbps / 1 Gbps). In addition, 10,300 public buildings (schools, health centers, KEP, etc.) will be connected to the internet at symmetrical speeds of 1 Gbps.

In detail, the number of households / businesses, per geographical area (LOT), which will be able to connect to the Internet at super-high speed, is as follows:

– Lot 1 (temporary contractor OTE SA): Approximately 124,000 households / businesses in 9 Regional Units (Rodopi, Drama, Evros, Xanthi, Zakynthos, Ilia, Arkadia, Corinth, Messinia)

– Lot 2 (temporary contractor Association of Companies TERNA ENERGIAKI SA / GRID TELECOMS SA): Approximately 137,000 households / businesses in 11 Regional Units (Pella, Pieria, Kastoria, Florina, Ioannina, Thespros, Thespros Magnesia, Sporades, Corfu)

– Lot 3 (temporary contractor OTE SA): Approximately 122,000 households / businesses in 13 Regional Units (Evia, Syros, Andros, Thira, Kea – Kythnos, Milos, Mykonos, Naxos, Paros Tinos, Heraklion, Rethymnon, Chania)

– Lot 4 (temporary contractor Association of Companies TERNA ENERGIAKI SA / GRID TELECOMS SA): Approximately 110,000 households / businesses in 9 Regional Units (Chalkidiki, Thassos, Kavala, Serres, Lesvos, Ikaria, Lemnos Chios)

– Lot 5 (temporary contractor Association of Companies TERNA ENERGIAKI SA / GRID TELECOMS SA): Approximately 127,000 households / businesses in 9 Regional Units (Thessaloniki, Kilkis, Evritania, Fokida, Ithaca, Lefkada, Kefalonia, Kefallinia) Etoloakarnania)

– Lot 6 (temporary contractor Association of Companies TERNA ENERGIAKI SA / GRID TELECOMS SA): Approximately 117,000 households / businesses in 8 Regional Units (Kozani, Grevena, Arta, Karditsa, Trikala, Imathia), Imathia

– Lot 7 (temporary contractor OTE SA): Approximately 101,000 households / businesses in 14 Regional Units (Boeotia, Fthiotida, Athens, BT Athens, DT Athens, NT Athens , East Attica, W. Attica, Piraeus and Islands, Kalymnos, Karpathos, Kos, Rhodes, Lassithi)

Upgrading connectivity infrastructure is expected to have a positive impact on the creation of new businesses and new jobs, while contributing to the improvement of services provided to the beneficiary population in areas such as health, education and tourism. In particular, the action is expected to contribute to the following:

– Development of new generation broadband infrastructure based on the broadband targets set by the European Commission for 2025 (Gigabit Society) and 2030 (Digital Compass).

Achieve a “substantial change” (step change) in terms of broadband availability, in areas and markets where it has been shown that there is zero or reduced interest in developing relevant infrastructure and services

– Creating a favorable environment for the penetration of next generation broadband services.

The project will be implemented through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) and the concession contract will last 26 years. The project is financed in terms of construction by the NSRF (NSRF 2014-2020 and NSRF 2021-2027) and through equity and loan funds of the contractors, while its operation will be covered by private partnerships. After the end of 26 years, the system will be transferred entirely to the Greek State. The total value of the contracts is around € 884 million, including VAT, with EU funding of € 249 million.

The project is part of the overall plan of the Ministry of Digital Government and the General Secretariat of Telecommunications and Post for the substantial upgrade of connectivity in the country, as reflected in the updated National Broadband Plan, which was recently put to public consultation. Together with the projects to be funded by the Recovery Fund, they are a set of initiatives that signal the practical support of the state in upgrading the country’s connectivity infrastructure, but also act as catalysts for accelerating private investment in modern broadband infrastructure, with the aim of to further accelerate convergence with other European countries on connectivity indicators.

The Minister of State and Digital Governance Kyriakos Pierrakakis “Ultra-Fast Broadband is one of the most crucial steps in upgrading connectivity across the country. Our goal is to accelerate the ‘decalcification’ of networks to ensure faster and more reliable connections for all citizens,” he said. wherever they are in the country. “With projects such as Ultra-Fast Broadband and the private investments that are constantly being announced in the telecommunications sector, we are increasingly approaching the European goal.”

The Minister of Development and Investment Adonis Georgiades “One of the leading projects for the digital upgrade of the Greek economy is starting. With coordinated actions of the Ministry of Digital Government and the Ministry of Development and Investment, we managed to complete the tender process and appoint temporary contractors to start implementation in 2022 of a project for the construction of high-bandwidth infrastructure, the benefit of which will be enormous for the Greek economy “.

The Deputy Minister of Development and Investment Nikos Papathanasis “With the completion of the tender process and the announcement of temporary contractors, the implementation of the development and operation of high-bandwidth networks throughout the country will begin in 2022. With this PPP, the availability of telecommunications services in areas that do not have High-speed internet access, significantly upgrading all the Regions of our country.The PPP projects ensure the time, the cost of implementation but also the quality of the project.By leveraging public and private resources, PPP development projects produce added value for the State, their citizens and businesses with efficiency, transparency and proper planning “.

The Deputy Minister of Development and Investment Giannis Tsakiris He said: “This is a project funded by European funds and will undoubtedly have a catalytic contribution to the digital transformation of the country, which is one of the strategic goals of the Greek economy. Almost 20% of the country’s households and businesses and more 10,000 public buildings will be able to access the internet at high speed, thus upgrading their infrastructure and creating a strong footprint in the economy, while creating new businesses and new jobs, while improving the services provided to the beneficiary sector. such as health, education and tourism “.