Press Release

Rome, 3 August 2017 – The Chief Executive Officer of Acea, Stefano Antonio Donnarumma, and Tommaso Pompei, Open Fiber’s Chief Executive Officer, have today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (“MoU”) in the presence of the companies’ respective chairmen, Luca Lanzalone and Franco Bassanini. The MoU establishes the terms and conditions for the start-up of a strategic industrial partnership to build a super-fast broadband electronic communications network serving the municipality of Rome.

The Memorandum, which will remain in effect until 31 December 2017, assigns Acea the role of infrastructure provider. In particular, Acea will grant Open Fiber access to infrastructure it owns (or that is available to it), supplying the cartographic data and support needed to identify the infrastructure to be used in constructing the network. Acea may also contribute to physical construction of the network.

In return for access to Acea’s infrastructure, Open Fiber will be responsible for:

• choosing the network architecture and, should Acea show an interest in such an activity, providing it with the technical specifications needed to design and carry out the related works;
• providing Acea with network and commercial services on a wholesale basis (such as the lease of portions of the network, connections and active services);
• ensuring the transfer of technical and technological know-how to Acea to enable it to develop its own services (telecontrol solutions for plant and equipment and/or Smart City services).

At Acea’s request, the parties may establish a company, to be majority owned by Acea, to develop Smart City projects.

Finally, the parties have given a mutual commitment to not enter into talks with third parties regarding construction of an electronic communications network in the municipality of Rome, or any area thereof, throughout the duration of the MoU.

Acea’s CEO, Stefano Antonio Donnarumma, commented:  “This Memorandum of Understanding confirms Acea’s determination to use its extensive infrastructure to make Rome an increasingly technologically advanced city, by embracing fully sustainable development. Thanks to this major fibre project, the capital will be able to make best use of the infinite number of applications that an efficient, modern telecommunications network has to offer, providing its citizens with a vast range of other useful services. One of these applications,” continued Donnarumma, “will enable us to start advanced monitoring and automation of the electricity and water networks, aiding in their preventive maintenance by, for example, detecting hidden leaks in the water mains.”

For Tommaso Pompei, “The agreement with Acea marks a key step in consolidating Open Fiber’s industrial strategy. We are rolling out our infrastructure in all of Italy’s metropolitan cities and we want to include the capital. Rome will have an extensive, widespread FTTH fibre network that will provide households, businesses and the public sector with levels of connectivity never seen before.”