The network to be acquired includes coverage of homes in The Hague, Rotterdam and Eindhoven
KPN is to acquire fibre broadband infrastructure built by Dutch investment firm Primevest Capital Partners for an undisclosed sum.
The network will expand KPN’s footprint by 127,000 homes in the important areas of The Hague, Rotterdam and Eindhoven. The deal is expected to close at the end of the month.
Past the 4 million mark
Wouter Stammeijer, Chief Technology & Digital Officer at incumbent KPN, said, “The acquisition of Primevest’s fibre network is a welcome addition to our existing fibre footprint, which totals 4 million households.
“We’ve been making strong progress with our fibre roll-out, which is at the heart of our strategy. In the next few years we will be fully focused to complete this project.”
KPN’s target is to pass 80% of premises in the Netherlands with fibre by 2026, in its own right and through partnerships.
Good progress
According to the FTTH Council Europe’s most recent figures, the Netherlands was in the top five in terms of the annual growth rate in premises passed, which rose by 34.7%.
In the first quarter of this year it added 85,000 households and activated 46,000 – impressive both in terms of roll-out and adoption rate (for example, the UK’s adoption rate is under 10% for 300Mbps+) and a further 30,000 with partners.
Glaspoort was the main contributor here with 27,000 of the total. This is a 50:50 joint venture set up in March 2021 with ABP, a subsidiary of Dutch pension fund AGP.
High fibre adoption rates is allowing KPN to begin decommissioning its copper local loop in some areas. This brings big efficiencies in terms of energy consumption, management and maintenance.