Government launches new public consultation to identify areas without broadband coverage

07/03/2022
220308_f_bandas.jpg
  • The public consultation will make it possible to identify precisely the areas likely to receive aid within the framework of the call for proposals. UNIQUE – Broadband, which in 2022 will have an allocation of up to 215 million euros
  • This program is funded by the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, which prioritizes 100% of the population to have ultra-fast broadband coverage, thereby strengthening territorial and social cohesion.
  • At present, Spain is the third country of the EU with better connectivity, with broadband coverage at 30 Mbps 92% of the population and 87% at a rate of 100 Mbps
  • The public consultation will remain open until April 6
    • This program is funded by the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, which prioritizes 100% of the population to have ultra-fast broadband coverage.

    The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation has published a public consultation on the preliminary list of potential areas for action and reception of aid that will be included in the call for proposals. UNIQUE-Broadband of 2022, provided with 215 million euros of funds from the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan.

    UNIQUE-Broadband aims to extend ultra-fast broadband in so-called white or grey areas, as allowed by European regulations on State aid. White areas are those that don’t have network coverage of at least 30 Mbpsand no plans for their funding over the next three years. Grey areas are those that have very high speed coverage, below 100 Mbps and loaned by a single operator.

    The impulse that has been given in recent years to the extension of broadband - which already reaches 92% of the population in Spain - makes it difficult to identify the areas without coverage since they are increasingly small and dispersed. For this reason, it has gone from an identification linked to singular entities of population to an identification per cadastral plot.

    From the georeferenced coverage provided by more than 250 telecommunications operators, 372,000 zones have been provisionally identified, totaling 1,623,000 real estate units, which gives idea of the increase in the degree of dispersion and the reduction in the size of the zones.

    Program of Universalization of Digital Infrastructures for Cohesion (UNICO)

    The Digital Infrastructure for Cohesion Universalization Program (UNICO) serves as a framework for different calls that will facilitate the universalization of ultra-fast broadband access and 5G extension. Achieving broadband coverage at 100 Mbps for 100% of the population is one of the objectives of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan and the Digital Spain Agenda.

    The first announcement of the Program UNIQUE-Broadband, resolved last December, granted grants worth 249.9 million euros, the largest allocation in the history of broadband programs. The winning projects will bring broadband to more than one million households and businesses in 4,500 municipalities.

    Currently, Spain is already the third country in Europe with the best connectivity, with broadband coverage at 30 Mbps 92% (in rural areas 65%) and 87% at a rate of 100 Mbps.

    More information about the public consultation in this link