Harnessing the Power of Digital Technology – Fibre to the Premise and 5G Enablement

The provision of high class digital services is a stimulant for innovation and the creation of new business streams, leading in turn to economic growth, social inclusion and cohesion. Accordingly it is a critical enabler for the achievement of the CCR strategic ambition and growth plans.

To date the region has suffered from a lack of commercial investment in digital infrastructure that consequently has resulted in an underlying gap in delivery capability compared with other regions of the UK. This has been brought into sharp focus throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.

It is now imperative we address the gap and future-proof fixed fibre and mobile networks in order to provide a transformative foundation for both businesses and citizens across the region. Failure to do so will result in:

A loss in local productivity, employment and reduction in GVA
An inability to attract inward investment by highly skilled digital intensive industries
An adverse impact on the delivery of local services, notably education, health and transport
Environmental challenges
A widening gap in access to digital services across the region leading to further isolated communities
A loss of competitive advantage for the cities and development zones of the region.

Proposition

With initiatives such as Superfast Cymru, Local Full Fibre Network, Rural Gigabit Programme and the South Wales Trunk Road Fibre Concession, together with agreed investment from the CCR Investment Framework into Full Fibre and 5G coverage, our ambition is to;

Deliver a world class, high-quality, full fibre and wireless digital services across the region.
Provide a connectivity platform for our communities and key business sectors that enables them to compete on the global stage.

This will facilitate:

Existing businesses being able to exploit Digital Infrastructure, including the use of 5G technology in machine learning and AI & VR applications, to innovate new business models, generate productivity and create new markets.
New business start-ups being able to capitalise on Digital Infrastructure to operate new digitally dependent business models at lower cost and more flexibly than established businesses
Communities being more self -sustaining through remote access to better digital services and by allowing rural SMEs to work and conduct business through digital platforms
Advancements in smart cities/homes infrastructure offering reductions in energy use, congestion and fuel costs stemming from smart management, smart energy and smart travel systems.

Requirements

£120m – To facilitate the roll-out of FTTP across our key industrial sites and towns across the region
£50m – To maximise the impact of 5G applications in our key clusters and support the roll out of 5G capability