On 25 August 2010 the European Investment Bank (EIB) lent EUR 150 million to Iliad Group, a major player in fixed telecommunications in France, for the nationwide roll-out of very high-speed broadband services (Fibre To The Home – FTTH).
This EIB finance will make a crucial contribution to the implementation of Iliad Group’s plan to roll out very high-speed broadband, which aims to provide coverage for 4 million homes that will be able to be connected to FTTH by the end of 2012. The loan will also enable the Group to continue to extend ADSL coverage in France as part of unbundling, in order to significantly extend in 2010-2011 the availability of its triple-play services by opening 600 to 800 new customer connection nodes (CCNs). For the roll-out of its FTTH network, Iliad Group has chosen a "point-to-point" architecture, which will enable network capacity to be developed easily and support the new high-speed telecommunications services (HD and 3D TV, exchange of innovation-related digitised data, etc.).
EIB Vice-President Philippe de Fontaine stressed the importance of this financing operation in the following terms: "In order to help support the European economy, the EIB has set itself the priority objective of developing a competitive economy in Europe, based on the education-research-innovation triangle. In addition to financing research by large companies and SMEs, this strategy presupposes an efficient infrastructure for disseminating knowledge in Europe. It is in this context that we are glad to be supporting Iliad Group’s plan to roll out very high-speed broadband, which will soon enable private individuals to have access to innovative digital services and products".
“Iliad is delighted with this financial partnership with the European Investment Bank, a partnership that highlights Iliad’s role as the driving force in the digital economy in France”, said Thomas Reynaud, Iliad Group’s Financial Director and Director of Development.
Since 2000, the EIB has invested nearly EUR 87 billion in backing the knowledge economy in Europe, in order to develop competitiveness and support employment in the European Union, in the context of a global economy. In 2009 alone, the Bank made EUR 1.4 billion available for the development of innovation and its networks in France, mainly in the motor vehicle, aeronautical and health sectors.
Note to editors:
EIB
The EIB is the bank of the European Union. Its remit is to provide mainly long-term loans to support viable private or public investment projects that realise the objectives of EU integration, cohesion and development, based on six priority policies: economic and social cohesion; protection of the natural and urban environment; research and innovation; support for SMEs; trans-European transport networks; and the promotion of secure, competitive and sustainable energy supplies. In 2009, it provided finance totalling EUR 70.3 billion within the European Union, an increase of 37% compared with the EUR 51.7 billion lent in 2008. France received loans totalling EUR 6.3 billion in 2009.
ILIAD
Iliad Group is a major player on the French market for internet access and telecommunications with Free et Alice (4 514 000 ADSL subscribers as at 30/06/2010), Onetel (a fixed telephony operator) and Free Mobile. Iliad Group is listed on Euronext Paris’s Eurolist with the symbol ILD.
This EIB finance will make a crucial contribution to the implementation of Iliad Group’s plan to roll out very high-speed broadband, which aims to provide coverage for 4 million homes that will be able to be connected to FTTH by the end of 2012. The loan will also enable the Group to continue to extend ADSL coverage in France as part of unbundling, in order to significantly extend in 2010-2011 the availability of its triple-play services by opening 600 to 800 new customer connection nodes (CCNs). For the roll-out of its FTTH network, Iliad Group has chosen a "point-to-point" architecture, which will enable network capacity to be developed easily and support the new high-speed telecommunications services (HD and 3D TV, exchange of innovation-related digitised data, etc.).
EIB Vice-President Philippe de Fontaine stressed the importance of this financing operation in the following terms: "In order to help support the European economy, the EIB has set itself the priority objective of developing a competitive economy in Europe, based on the education-research-innovation triangle. In addition to financing research by large companies and SMEs, this strategy presupposes an efficient infrastructure for disseminating knowledge in Europe. It is in this context that we are glad to be supporting Iliad Group’s plan to roll out very high-speed broadband, which will soon enable private individuals to have access to innovative digital services and products".
“Iliad is delighted with this financial partnership with the European Investment Bank, a partnership that highlights Iliad’s role as the driving force in the digital economy in France”, said Thomas Reynaud, Iliad Group’s Financial Director and Director of Development.
Since 2000, the EIB has invested nearly EUR 87 billion in backing the knowledge economy in Europe, in order to develop competitiveness and support employment in the European Union, in the context of a global economy. In 2009 alone, the Bank made EUR 1.4 billion available for the development of innovation and its networks in France, mainly in the motor vehicle, aeronautical and health sectors.
Note to editors:
EIB
The EIB is the bank of the European Union. Its remit is to provide mainly long-term loans to support viable private or public investment projects that realise the objectives of EU integration, cohesion and development, based on six priority policies: economic and social cohesion; protection of the natural and urban environment; research and innovation; support for SMEs; trans-European transport networks; and the promotion of secure, competitive and sustainable energy supplies. In 2009, it provided finance totalling EUR 70.3 billion within the European Union, an increase of 37% compared with the EUR 51.7 billion lent in 2008. France received loans totalling EUR 6.3 billion in 2009.
ILIAD
Iliad Group is a major player on the French market for internet access and telecommunications with Free et Alice (4 514 000 ADSL subscribers as at 30/06/2010), Onetel (a fixed telephony operator) and Free Mobile. Iliad Group is listed on Euronext Paris’s Eurolist with the symbol ILD.