Vodafone, CityFibre Form Partnership to Deliver High-Speed Fiber in UK

Vodafone Group PLC (VOD.LN) and CityFibre Infrastructure Holdings PLC (CITY.LN) have signed a long-term partnership to deliver high-speed full-fiber connectivity to up to five million homes and businesses in the U.K. by 2025, both companies said Thursday.

Vodafone said it will have exclusive rights to market broadband services on the fiber-to-the-premises network, which will be built, operated and owned by CityFibre. Construction of the first phase of the infrastructure, serving one million homes, is due to start in the first half of 2018 and will be largely completed in 2021, Vodafone said.

The first phase of the agreement is expected to be worth more than 500 million pounds ($656.6 million) over 20 years, said CityFibre.

Under the deal, both companies can extend the agreement to expand coverage to a further four million premises by 2025.

Write to Adria Calatayud at adria.calatayudvaello@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 09, 2017 03:08 ET (08:08 GMT)