The areas eligible for support for the deployment of fixed broadband networks are determined by the State aid regulations, mainly by the General Block Exemption Regulation (Regulation (EU) 651/2014) and the guidelines on State aid for broadband networks (Communication 2023/C 36/01). They define areas eligible for state aid from 2023 onwards as those where there is no network capable of providing download speeds of at least 100 Mbps under present or credibly planned peak demand conditions within the relevant time horizon (also called fixed ultra-fast broadband networks). In addition, other requirements are introduced for publicly funded deployed networks such as at least tripling the download speed of existing networks.
This definition of areas eligible for State aid represents a change from the eligibility criterion applicable until 2022, which was based on the European Union Guidelines for the application of State aid rules to the rapid deployment of broadband networks (2013/C 25/01) that defined them based on NGA white areas (areas where there was no network capable of providing speeds of at least 30 Mbps present or no plans for their deployment) and NGA grey areas (areas where there is only one network operator capable of providing speeds of at least 30 Mbps present or no plans for their deployment).
In order to be able to determine which are these areas where ultra-fast broadband networks do not exist or are planned, the State Secretariat for Telecommunications and Digital Infrastructures collects annually detailed information on the broadband coverage provided by the different operators existing in Spain, in application of the provisions of article 2 of Royal Decree 462/2015, of 5 June, which regulates instruments and procedures of coordination between different Public Administrations in the field of public aid aimed at promoting the information society through the promotion of the offer and availability of broadband networks, through the procedure provided in article 9.1 of Law 11/2022, of June 28.
With this information of the coverage situation, the information of the projects that have received public aid for the deployment of broadband in previous calls and the forecasts in the relevant time horizon reported by the operators, it is possible to identify in a preliminary way the areas that meet the conditions to be considered eligible in actions according to the terms of the State aid regulations. This information is submitted to public consultation for at least 30 days to check the veracity and completeness of the information. Once the claims presented have been resolved, the definitive list of the areas that will be considered eligible and that are applicable to the aid that is intended to be granted in that year is obtained.