Orange Concessions, the new company 50% owned by Orange and 50% by a consortium made up of La Banque des Territoires (Caisse des Dépôts), CNP Assurances and EDF Invest, is now operational.
Orange Concessions, which was first announced in January this year, comprises 24 Public Initiative Networks (PIN), under contract with local authorities, in Metropolitan France and overseas territories. These networks ultimately represent over 4.5 million households connected to fibre, making Orange Concessions the leading infrastructure operator in rural France.
Orange Concessions will be managed by Jean-Germain Breton, who has a solid track-record managing public initiative telecoms networks and working alongside local authorities, and supported by a team of over 100 women and men, 60% of whom will be located in the regions, close to the local authorities.
The commitment of La Banque des Territoires to this consortium and to Orange Concessions represents an important step as part of its mission to promote fibre connectivity in remote, sparsely populated regions of France.
The strategic partnership, which valued Orange Concessions at €2.675 billion, was finalised on November 3.
At the signing, Stéphane Richard, chairman and CEO of Orange, said: “By 2025, 30% of FTTH connections in rural areas of France will be operated by Orange Concessions. Over the past ten years, Orange has been the undisputed leader of this major infrastructure project in France. I am now delighted that long-term investors – recognised for their infrastructure expertise and their proximity to local authorities – have acquired a stake in Orange Concessions. Orange is more committed than ever to being the go-to partner for local authorities in their regional digital development projects”.
Olivier Sichel, deputy CEO of the Caisse des Dépôts and MD of La Banque des Territoires, added: “The target to reach 100% coverage by 2022 set-out in France’s Very High Speed Broadband plan requires the mobilisation of everyone. By investing in Orange Concessions alongside CNP Assurances and EDF Invest, La Banque des Territoires continues to fight against regional exclusion, of which the digital divide is one possible cause. Not having access to the Internet is a barrier for everyone: for the general population, in the search for jobs, in the ability to maintain contact with their friends and families or even in having access to knowledge; or for companies wishing to set up in rural areas; or even for local authorities wishing to digitalize their services and thus make them more accessible to people, even the most isolated. This is why La Banque des Territoires provides loans or investment support to 80% of French departments for their Very High Speed Broadband projects. Our effort of €1.8 billion will bring optical fibre to more than 12 million premises (homes and businesses) by 2025”.
Stéphane Dedeyan, CEO of CNP Assurances, said: “As a responsible investor, CNP Assurances is pleased to support the development of Orange Concessions and thus provide its policyholders with the recurring and long-term returns offered by this type of infrastructure. In addition, in accordance with our raison d’être and alongside Orange and the members of the consortium, we intent to act for an inclusive and sustainable society and to participate fully in reducing the digital divide in rural France by providing fibre connectivity to the widest possible population”.
Pierre Benoist d’Anthenay, director of EDF Invest, added: “This investment in a large-scale digital infrastructure marks a further step in EDF Invest’s deployment and diversification strategy. In addition, we are very happy to form this partnership with Orange, a benchmark player in fibre in Europe, alongside the Caisse des Dépôts and CNP Assurances”.
