BT to deliver full fibre broadband to remote Wales

The UK’s top telecoms operator, BT, recently signed a contract worth £10 million to supply gigabit-capable broadband to the Swansea Bay City Region in Wales.

The leading provider will bring full-fibre access to almost 1,800 remote sites along the Welsh south coast, connecting users struggling with poor broadband in Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Neath Port Talbot and Swansea.

BT confirmed the deal in a recent announcement.

The agreement is included in the “Better Broadband” initiative helmed by the “Digital Infrastructure Programme”, set up through the “Swansea Bay City Deal”. The programme will now be rolled out through the BT-owned network operator Openreach.

The Swansea Bay City Deal has significant support and is backed by both the Welsh and UK government, as well as both the private and public sectors. It has a significant investment of £1.3 billion, and the funds will be funnelled into several projects and programmes to deliver 36 standalone plans across Wales’s southwest.

Swansea Council leader, Rob Stewart, commented that the newly signed agreement will create positive change in the Swansea Bay Region. He mentioned that faster internet would enhance the quality of people’s lives, but also create a chance for both social and economic progress in the area.

The long-term goal of the initiative and its partners is to supply core advantages to businesses and residents based in the area across a 15-year term, with the projects and programmes centred on three main headings: wellbeing and life science, economic acceleration and digital, and smart manufacturing and energy.