Communiqué: Orange partners with APG for the deployment of an additional 1.7m FTTH plugs in Poland through a 50-50 joint venture valued at 605 million euros

Press release

Paris, 12 April 2021

Orange partners with APG for the deployment of an additional 1.7m FTTH plugs in Poland through a 50-50 joint venture valued at 605 million euros

Orange Polska announced today the creation of a FiberCo co-owned (50-50) with APG. This joint venture aims to support the rollout of fiber in Poland, in areas where access to very high-speed broadband infrastructure is limited or inexistent. The FiberCo integrates 2.4 million lines, including 1.7 million households that will be deployed over the next five years.

This transaction values the joint venture at 2,748 million PLN (605 million euros) following a competitive process aimed at seeking out a long-term partner. As a result, Orange Polska will receive 1,374 million PLN (303 million euros) from APG, of which 65% will be transferred on closing and the rest between 2022 and 2026 as the deployment plan advances.

This project will allow Orange Polska to pursue its ambitious fiber-optic rollout strategy by sharing investment costs.

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This announcement follows other Orange Group announcements including the creation of Orange Concessions in January 2021 and the outline of the European Towerco Totem in February 2021. As such, Orange continues to deploy its infrastructure strategy as set-out in its Engage 2025 plan.

Commenting on the partnership in Poland, Mari-Noëlle Jégo-Laveissière, Deputy CEO of Orange in charge of European Operations (outside France), said: “This partnership with APG is excellent news for Orange Polska. APG is a global leader in infrastructure management and will provide us with the financial backing necessary to achieve our ambitious five-year fiber roll-out program in Poland. Together we will be able to bring fiber to an additional 1.7 million homes mainly in areas that still lack reliable internet access across the country. This ambition will be backed with a tried-and-tested business model that aims to maximize available revenues by opening-up wholesale access to third-party operators. This is a clear win-win for everybody that will also contribute to social and economic development in the country.”

Ramon Fernandez, Delegate CEO of Orange in charge of Finance, Performance and Development, commented: “I am delighted that Orange, as Europe’s leading player in the FTTH fiber market and one of the largest mobile network operators, has successfully brought to fruition its three major infrastructure projects, delivering on the commitment made in our Engage 2025 strategic plan. These projects clearly underline the value of our network assets, which have been shown to be so crucial during the ongoing pandemic. By creating these independent structures, we are strengthening our leadership and fostering sustainable value creation through an optimized infrastructure management and improved customer service.”

Orange’s other infrastructure projects include:

• Orange Concessions: Orange announced the creation of its French FiberCo in January 2021 bringing together 4.5 million fiber plugs in rural France. .
• Totem: Orange’s wholly-owned European TowerCo bringing together passive-infrastructure assets in its mobile networks in France and Spain. .

About Orange

Orange is one of the world’s leading telecommunications operators with sales of 42.3 billion euros in 2020 and 142,000 employees worldwide at 31 December 2020, including 82,000 employees in France. The Group has a total customer base of 259 million customers worldwide at 31 December 2020, including 214 million mobile customers and 22 million fixed broadband customers. The Group is present in 26 countries. Orange is also a leading provider of global IT and telecommunication services to multinational companies, under the brand Orange Business Services. In December 2019, the Group presented its new "Engage 2025" strategic plan, which, guided by social and environmental accountability, aims to reinvent its operator model. While accelerating in growth areas and placing data and AI at the heart of its innovation model, the Group will be an attractive and responsible employer, adapted to emerging professions.

Orange is listed on Euronext Paris (symbol ORA) and on the New York Stock Exchange (symbol ORAN).

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