According to Europa Press, the deal is subject to a number of conditions but if it goes ahead will see Lytia take over 57% of Iberdrola’s fibre network for at least 50 years.
Due to the high density of Spain’s dark fibre market, Lyntia is also required to maintain its contractual terms with existing customers and offer extended contracts that expire in ten years. At present the two main operators, Reintel and Lyntia, cover more than 90% of the market.
Additionally, the company will also need to offer reasonable access to its entire dark fibre network in Spain for a period of 5 years. Also under the terms of the agreement, Iberdrola will have rights to “exclusive long-term ownership or use.”
The regulator concluded in saying that it will “monitor the fulfilment of Lyntia's commitments” and that the buying company is required to “periodically submit a set of information that allows to verify the effective respect of such commitments.”
Lyntia is one of Spain’s largest wholesale operators with a nationwide long-haul network and fast growing dark fibre, lit fibre and fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) businesses that was acquired by French investment firm Antin Infrastructure Partners for an undisclosed amount in 2018. The acquisition of Iberdrola’s fibre network will bring its total footprint to 30,000km, with another 5,000km to be deployed later this year.
In May of this year, Lyntia announced plans to roll out fibre to two million Spanish homes by 2020 all “neutrally and at very competitive prices”
