Full fibre telecommunications venture Ogi has reached a significant milestone in its £200m South Wales network first phase rollout with one in every five premises it passes having signed up to its residential and business services.
It announced its fibre to the premises (FTTP) investment in 2021 and earlier this year reached 100,000 residential and commercial properties, across nine local authority areas, reaching as far west as Pembrokeshire.
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Reaching the two-third customer target ahead of its initial target comes following a targeted period of investment in back office operations and customer service. Ogi’s current phase one business plan is on track to see its full fibre network being available to 150,000 premises across South Wales next year. Ogi is backed by private equity investor Infracapital.
Its one in five available premises levels means it has a customer base of just over 20,000, having started this year with 15,000. The recent strong growth has been fuelled by its new pricing offer for 200Mbps launched in January and a sustained focus on customer satisfaction.
Ogi chief executive, Ben Allwright, said: “With one in five of the premises we can serve already signed up to Ogi, it’s clear to see we’re investing in the right places. Passing the 100,000 premises milestone – two thirds of our initial plan, completed – and seeing the massive benefits from this technology as adoption increases is encouraging.
“Putting our internet service providers operations first since the start of the year, and harnessing the build machine as a tool for growth has allowed us to take a breath, and make sure we’re doing the right things for our customers and long-term sustainability. While we might not be as visible installing new network as we had been – we’ve been busy in the background, supporting our existing customer base and welcoming thousands more every month.
The network is currently being rolled out in around 60 towns and villages across south Wales.
Moreover, through a 25-year agreement with Welsh Government, Ogi has built a network of dark fibre and microducts to deliver a route along the south-east section of the M4 corridor.
Mapping the public-owned trunk road network, the new 70km route offers a mix of wholesale products, boosting capacity and resilience for the likes of carriers, hyper-scalers, data centres and internet service providers looking to expand in and beyond the region.
High-capacity fibre pairs and microducts have been installed over the Prince of Wales Bridge, from where they pass through the Vantage Data Centre on the edge of Newport and on to the Stadium House internet exchange in the centre of Cardiff.
The latest milestone is allowing Ogi to accelerate its ambitious programme into wholesale markets for the first time – investing in the potential to serve high capacity demand across the region.
Ogi’s chief technology and operations officer, Justin Leese, said: “With billions being invested in new data centres around the world, the need for high-capacity connectivity and increasing resilience regionally – along with the expert support that goes with it - is pivotal if Wales is going to attract tomorrow’s tech leaders, today.”
“The big data age is here, with technology like AI forging ahead a need for more space and network capacity. This new network puts Wales on the map as a place to do business confidently, boosting the opportunities for a sector that’s already worth over £8.5bn to the Welsh economy.”
