The incumbent already offers VDSL2 to nearly all the country, but FTTP has only been developed in new-build areas. The company is now committing to a 'Fiber for Belgium' investment plan to bring gigabit speeds to the country. Dense cities will be the first covered, starting with the roll-out from early 2017 in Antwerp, Brussels, Charleroi, Ghent, Namur and Roeselare.
Proximus said the fast speeds and low latency of fibre will help strengthen its position in the enterprise market and grow its share in the residential segment, where it faces sharp competition from cable operators like Telenet. It is the business market driving the plans, and Proximus said it makes economic sense to roll out FTTH alongside FTTB in dense areas. In less dense areas, the operator will continue to upgrade its FTTC network, bringing fibre closer to the customer and adopting next-generation VDSL techniques.
Proximus said it's already among the world’s top five operators for the proportion of fibre in its VDSL network, with over 21,000 km of optical fibre connecting its street cabinets. The company has rolled out fibre in over 80 percent of business zones in Belgium and more than 6,000 of its enterprise customers are connected to fibre already.
The company noted that its strong balance sheet means its dividend will not be affected by the investment plan and promised a stable pay-out of EUR 1.50 per share in 2017-2019. Capital spending is expected to be around EUR 1 billion per year over the next three years, up slightly from EUR 950 million this year.
The company also has the backing of its largest shareholder, the Belgian state for the plan. Prime Minister Charles Michel said in a statement that the federal government "will make sure that the conditions are favorable for this investment in fibre".
