Cube Infrastructure Managers, on behalf of its European broadband and digital infrastructure investments fund, has invested in a fibre rollout project in Italy through ClioFiber.
Cube said its Connecting Europe Broadband Fund (CEBF) is investing in the wholesale fibre-to-the-home (FTTH)/fibre-to-the-office project operated by ClioFiber. The first phase of the project represents an investment plan of €50m.
ClioFiber plans to cover 20-plus municipalities with its transmission infrastructure and provide full-fibre broadband to 130,000 premises within two years. The company also has a partnership with ClioCom (together with its affiliate FibraSalento), a local Internet service provider.
The latest deal is CEBF’s tenth investment since its launch in 2018. The fund has so far committed around €250m in FTTH infrastructure projects.
The European Commission, one of CEBF’s anchor investors, said: “This CEBF’s tenth investment also represents a great achievement for the European Commission, setting an important milestone in the achievement of EU connectivity objectives.”
Izzet Güney, partner at Cube Infrastructure Managers, said: “We are pleased to announce this new investment which will allow the deployment of new fibre networks connecting less populated areas across the Apulia region in Italy. With this transaction, CEBF is pursuing its investment program in a dynamic environment while continuing to push for an acceleration of fibre deployment at the European level.
This is CEBF’s second investment in Italy, and tenth overall, which underlines the fund’s commitment to advancing connectivity for people and businesses across Europe, Güney said.
Moreno Grassi, CEO of ClioFiber, said: “We are committed to growing our network and meeting the need for fast and reliable full fibre internet connections, especially in underserved rural areas. Securing this level of funding from CEBF not only underpins our ambitious growth plans but is also a vote of confidence in ClioFiber as a business and the product we offer.”
Clara Quarta, CEO of FibraSalento, said: “We take on this new challenge to continue delivering first-class digital services in our territory, which we’ve continually done through ClioCom’s presence in the market for more than 25 years now, services which have always been characterised by the highest quality and putting the customer first.
”This ClioFiber partnership and the expansion of our company will be our strength and will continue to open avenues for future prospects.”
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