LONDON: Zegona Communications plc (LSE: ZEG) announced Monday that Vodafone Holdings Europe, MasOrange S.L, and global investor GIC Private Markets Pte Ltd have entered into a binding agreement to establish FibreCo, a new fibre network company in Spain.
The deal activates a prior agreement signed in January 2025 between Vodafone Spain and MasOrange, aiming to consolidate their fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) assets into a single entity. FibreCo will operate a 100% FTTH network covering 12 million premises, making it one of the most advanced fibre infrastructures in Europe.
Currently, the network serves 4.5 million Vodafone and MasOrange customers, with nearly 40% utilization. The new company will support rapid deployment of technologies such as XGSPON and meet high environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards, including significant energy savings.
GIC will acquire a 25% stake in FibreCo, joining MasOrange with 58% and Vodafone Spain with 17%. The venture will be backed by over €5 billion in net debt, primarily investment grade, allowing for optimized upfront cash proceeds and strategic flexibility. Vodafone is expected to receive €1.4 billion in upfront proceeds.
The announcement follows Vodafone Spain’s March 2025 launch of FiberPass, a joint venture with Telefónica. Together, FiberPass and FibreCo will complete Vodafone’s nationwide FTTH strategy.
“This transaction is a key milestone in the transformation of Vodafone Spain,” said Eamonn O’Hare, chairman and CEO of Zegona. “It delivers on our network upgrade strategy and positions us to execute a shareholder-friendly capital allocation policy.”
The deal is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025.