News

The deal with Egg Power will supply roughly 5% of the company’s energy demands

Today, Virgin Media O2 (VMO2) is expanding its renewable energy usage, signing a new 10-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with solar power provider Egg Power.

The deal will see VMO2 source power from Egg’s new solar farm  70MW solar farm in Suffolk, which is currently under construction and is expected to begin power generation in 2027.

In total, the agreement is expected to cover around 5% of VMO2’s total energy demand.

Egg Power is a natural energy partner for VMO2, with both companies being owned by Liberty Global.

The deal is expected to significantly contribute to VMO2’s Net Zero carbon emissions goals, with the operator currently aiming for neutrality across its entire value chain by 2040.

“This agreement with egg Power is the latest step in Virgin Media O2’s journey to achieve net zero emissions by the end of 2040,” said Mark Hardman, Director, Finance Operations at VMO2. “We’re committed to growing and operating our business in a way that’s good for people and the planet, where we’re cutting carbon, securing renewable energy on a long-term basis, and sourcing renewable energy generation from the UK.”

The deal builds on a similar 10-year agreement for wind power that VMO2 signed with The Renewables Infrastructure Group last year. Combined, the two deals mean around 20% of VMO2’s energy usage will come from renewable PPAs.

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News

The project saw a self-driving vehicle successfully operate in a live commercial setting

The P-CAL (Port-Connected and Automated Logistics) project has been completed at the Port of Tyne, bringing a major UK deep-sea port one step closer to autonomous operations.

The project saw a fully autonomous terminal tractor deployed on a working quayside for the first time, as well as the handling of commercial containers.

The project was carried out by a consortium including the North East Automotive Alliance (NEAA), autonomous vehicle specialist Oxa, and various industry and academic partners, alongside the Port of Tyne itself.

The pilot builds upon the consortium’s previous connected and automated mobility (CAM) projects, as part of the UK government’s £150 million CAM Pathfinder programme. These projects include 5G CAL, which showed that a 5G network could be used to support autonomous driving and teleoperation of a heavy goods vehicle (HGV), and the V-CAL project, which saw four autonomous HGVs operating in real-word scenarios.

The completed P-CAL project represents the next logical step towards commercial operations by integrating the autonomous HGVs with existing terminal systems, real-time coordinating with live cranes, deploying a mesh communication network, and implementing security protocols to enable secure remote and autonomous operations.

“Delivering autonomous logistics in a live port environment has been a major step forward for the sector,” said Graeme Hardie, operations director at the Port of Tyne. “P-CAL has shown what’s possible when innovation is applied to real operational challenges, improving safety, efficiency and sustainability.”

“Through the project, we’ve demonstrated that existing work vehicles can be turned into a digital workforce – successfully completing autonomous container movements in a dynamic quayside environment, while providing worksite intelligence necessary for real-time industrial optimisation,” added Oxa founder and CEO Paul Newman. “P-CAL provides a blueprint for how ports and industrial hubs worldwide can deploy autonomous technology to drive productivity, efficiency and safety.”

The next phase of the project will involve multiple vehicles working simultaneously in a live environment.

Autonomous vehicle operations have long been a goal for ports and other large scale industrial operations, potentially providing improved operational efficiency and reducing staff exposure to dangerous working conditions.

In the most advanced markets, these projects are already being launched commercially. In China, for example, the world’s largest autonomous mining fleet has been operational for almost a year.

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Contributed Article

By Martha Galley, Chief Sustainability Officer, Calix 

In the race to show sustainability progress, companies often spotlight renewable energy, carbon offsets, or high-profile product launches. These are important, but one of the most effective and measurable ways to deliver both financial and environmental results often goes unnoticed: durability. 

Durability happens when sustainability is built into the design itself. It changes how a business operates, influencing materials, maintenance, and customer trust. When products and systems are built to last, they cut waste, reduce operating costs, and show that a company is thinking for the long term. 

In broadband, this principle has transformed how networks are built and maintained. For years, competition focused on speed, reliability, and upfront cost. Hardware was replaced frequently, and short product cycles were considered standard. But as broadband became essential for education, healthcare, remote work, and community connection, this short-term model began to show its limits. 

Every replacement cycle adds expense to equipment, labor, and training while creating more electronic waste. Providers have begun to realize that acquisition cost, or what you pay on day one, tells only part of the story. The real measure is the total cost of ownership and what it takes to run, maintain, and replace a system over its lifetime. 

Durability looks different across the broadband ecosystem. In the core and access network, systems are designed to operate for decades, but upgrades can require large infrastructure investments. At the premises level, the gateways, routers, and Wi-Fi systems inside homes and businesses turn over much faster, creating a greater environmental impact. That is where design innovation matters most. Software-enabled platforms extend product life and functionality through continuous updates instead of full hardware replacement. This is an evergreen innovation approach that keeps systems capable and efficient while reducing energy use and electronic waste. 

Research supports the importance of designing for longevity. The U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) found that increasing a product’s lifespan by 50 percent can reduce replacement needs and environmental impact by about one third. The Fiber Broadband Association reports that retiring copper networks in favor of fiber reduces both costs and emissions because copper requires far more energy to operate and maintain. 

The total cost of ownership perspective makes the value clear. When businesses account for energy use, maintenance, and replacement, durable systems often prove to be the smarter financial choice. Broadband providers discovered this when comparing copper and fiber, and the same holds true across industries, from automotive to consumer electronics. 

Durability may not grab headlines, but it makes sustainability real. It connects environmental responsibility with financial performance and builds long-term confidence among customers, communities, and investors. As more industries adopt sustainable design principles, durability will remain one of the strongest measures of both performance and resilience.

News

The move would create a combined entity valued at around $267 billion

Deutsche Telekom is considering merging with its US unit, T-Mobile, according to a report from Bloomberg citing people familiar with the matter.

Deutsche Telekom already owns a 53% stake in the US company but is now reportedly considering forming a holding company to combine the two businesses.

If such a deal were to be struck, this new company would be jointly owned by both companies’ existing shareholders and would potentially seek a listing in both the US and Europe, the sources said. Reporting from the Financial Times suggests the latter would likely take place in Luxembourg, Amsterdam, or Dublin, rather than Germany, for take advantage of lower tax.

The same sources emphasise that discussions are at an early stage and no formal decisions have been made.

Neither Deutsche Telekom nor T-Mobile have commented on the media report.

Deutsche Telekom has gradually increased its stake in T-Mobile over the past five years, growing from roughly 43% in 2021, following the T-Mobile–Sprint merger, to today’s 53%.

The US unit is by far Deutsche Telekom’s most valuable business, comprising around 72% of the operator group’s total value.

A merger of this scale would trigger intense scrutiny from both American and European regulators, with impact on competition, foreign ownership of critical infrastructure, and aligning cross-border regulations all key issues.

“We don’t see competition, security, or regulatory issues leading the [US] government to block the deal, but there are significant political issues that might have to be addressed in the deal ​review,” analysts at New Street Research told Reuters.

Approval from the German government would also be required, with the government currently owning a 14% stake in Deutsche Telekom and state-owned lender KfW also owning 14%. These stakes combined makes the German state Deutsche Telekom’ largest stakeholder.

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News

Deutsche Telekom is reportedly considering a merger with T-Mobile US, a move that could create the largest telecom in the world.

By Brad Randall, Broadband Communities

A report by Bloomberg says Deutsche Telekom is considering a merger with T-Mobile US.

The report cites people familiar with the deal as confirming that early-stage talks have begun regarding the creation of a holding company that would make bids for shares from both publicly traded companies.

Currently, Deutsche Telekom holds a majority stake (53%) in T-Mobile US.

Their involvement with T-Mobile US stretches back decades.

Bloomberg also reports that successful discussions may be contingent on commitments to maintain operations in Germany.

According to Bloomberg, the theoretical deal, if it gained regulatory approval, would set a record for the largest public M&A and simultaneously create the world’s largest telecom.

Yahoo! has reported that the deal could create a telecom with a market value approaching $300 billion, though they also point out that Berlin will hold influence over any future decisions.

Currently, Deutsche Telekom is 28% held by state lender KfW and the German government, Yahoo! reported.

Both companies have declined opportunities to comment on the reports.

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News

The country is one of the worst impacted by the ongoing war in Iran, with the majority of its fuel typically being imported from the Middle East

This week, Bangladesh’s telecoms network operators are warning that they may soon be forced to shut down services due to a lack of fuel.

In a letter to the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), the Association of Mobile Telecom Operators of Bangladesh (AMTOB) said that the industry is facing “severe operational distress due to the prolonged unavailability of commercial power and the lack of assured fuel supply for backup systems”.

“The situation has escalated beyond the operational control,” said the AMTOB in the letter. “If these conditions persist, there is an imminent risk of large-scale telecom network shutdowns across significant parts of the country.”

Bangladesh is facing a sever fuel shortage caused by the ongoing war in Iran, which has limited the export of vital fuel supplies from the Middle East. Around 80% of Bangladesh’s crude oil and 65% of its natural gas are imported from the region.

Fuel prices in Bangladesh have risen by around 15% since the start of the conflict and rationing is being imposed by the government.

For the telcos, which operate much of their infrastructure using this fuel, the situation could soon be untenable. Base transceiver stations (BTS) consume over 52,000 litres of diesel and 20,000 litres of octane daily, while data centre operations use around 500–600 litres of diesel per hour, or around 4,000 litres per day per facility.

“Multiple strategically vital telecom facilities are currently running on dangerously low fuel reserves,” said the letter.

Network operators are calling on the government to grant parts of their networks priority in order to ensure that critical services like mobile financial transactions and emergency response can remain operational.

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Press Release

These developments support the continued growth of the Nordic digital infrastructure market amid significant private data center expansion in Jutland and Copenhagen

Arelion is upgrading its Nørre Nebel site to support additional cable landings and long-term network scalability. The site is fully operational and project-ready with front haul, back haul and subsea horizontal directional drilling (HDDs) for landing multiple diverse sea cables in place.

The global internet carrier is leveraging its network of ducts on the north route from Nørre Nebel to Copenhagen via a unique subsea cable system from Aarhus to Copenhagen. On the south route, ducts passing Esbjerg to Kolding and Copenhagen add resilience and route diversity, with Kolding serving as a key junction point for routes south to Germany and east to Copenhagen.

These investments are part of Arelion’s ongoing strategy to connect many new data center developments in the region to its network, including the recently completed new duct and cable extensions connecting the atNorth DEN01 Copenhagen data center to Arelion’s Nordic AI superhighway.

Complementing the infrastructure, new optical systems supporting wavelength capacity have been added between Amsterdam and Kolding to enable more efficient traffic routing and offer diversity bypass options for Hamburg.

The improvements strengthen connectivity for customers in Denmark’s expanding data center markets and align with broader European initiatives to improve subsea and terrestrial infrastructure across the North Sea region. Denmark’s access to renewable energy and its strategic position continue to support its emergence as a regional data center hub, with the national market expected to reach $2.9 billion by 2030 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.44 percent.

“These upgrades to our Danish network reflect our broader commitment to strengthening digital infrastructure across the Nordics, helping us support enterprise and wholesale customers with low-latency, fully diverse connectivity and predictable performance as they deploy AI applications,” said Johan Ottosson, VP Strategy & Product Management at Arelion. “Our continued investment ensures the capacity needed to keep pace with accelerating demand for AI-driven services, providing a scalable and secure foundation for both training workloads and latency-sensitive inference use cases.”

The submarine cable industry is changing rapidly. Join the industry in discussion at Submarine Networks EMEA, the world’s premier subsea industry event

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News

The failed deployment could hinder commercial pilots of direct-to-device (D2D) services for AST’s mobile operator partners

Satellite company AST SpaceMobile has hit a setback this week, with its latest BlueBird 7 satellite being deployed in the wrong orbit.

The launch, which took pace on Sunday, saw BlueBird 7 carried into low Earth Orbit (LEO) by Blue Origin’s New Glenn reusable rocket. However, issues in deployment led to the satellite being placed into too low an orbit.

“During the New Glenn 3 mission, BlueBird 7 was placed into a lower than planned orbit by the upper stage of the launch vehicle. While the satellite separated from the launch vehicle and powered on, the altitude is too low to sustain operations with its on-board thruster technology and will [be] de-orbited,” explained AST SpaceMobile in a statement, noting that the cost of the lost satellite was covered by an insurance policy.

AST is currently in the process of deploying a constellation of roughly 90 LEO satellites, which will be used to provide global coverage of D2D satellite services. This will allow AST’s mobile operator partners, such as Vodafone and AT&T, to provide customers with coverage beyond the limits of their terrestrial networks.

AST currently has six active satellites in orbit, which provide intermittent coverage and have primarily been used for preliminary tests of the company’s D2D technology. BlueBird 7 was set to be the first of the company’s upgraded satellites, with 45–60 additional devices targeted for launch before the end of the year.

“The company is currently in production through BlueBird 32, with BlueBird 8 to 10 expected to be ready to ship in approximately 30 days,” said the company statement. “The company continues to expect an orbital launch every one to two months on average during 2026, supported by agreements with multiple launch providers, and it continues to target approximately 45 satellites in orbit by the end of 2026.”

The extent to which the failure to deliver BlueBird7 will impact AST’s customers is unclear. VodafoneThree, for example, is scheduled to begin trials of the technology with customers this summer.

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News

SFR, owned by billionaire Patrick Drahi’s Altice Group, rejected an initial offer of €17 billion in October

Bouygues Telecom, Orange, and Iliad have this week submitted a revised bid for rival operator SFR, valuing the business at €20.4 billon.

The offer comes after the trios initial approach of €17 billion was rejected last year.

Drahi had previously indicated that he was looking for offers closer to €20 billion.

The proposed deal would see the three telcos split the majority of SFR’s assets between them, with Bouygues taking 42% of the assets, Iliad 31%, and Orange 27%.

All three operators would have taken a piece of SFR’s consumer business, including mobile and fixed broadband customers, while the B2B unit would have been divided solely between Bouygues and Iliad.

The company’s physical network assets, both fixed and mobile, and the company’s spectrum holdings, would largely have been split between all three partners.

The proposal did not include some of Altice’s smaller assets, including stakes in Intelcia, UltraEdge, and XP Fibre, and alsoAltice group’s activities in French overseas departments and regions.

Any deal will be subject to strict regulatory scrutiny due to reducing the number of mobile operators in the market from four to three.

Traditionally, European regulators have been loath to allow such mergers, viewing them as reducing competition and driving up costs for consumers. In recent years, however, opposition to these mergers is waning, with notable large-scale deals being permitted, including Three and Vodafone in the UK and Orange and MasMovil in Spain.

This trend looks set to continue. Earlier this week, the European Commission announced it is looking to relax merger rules across the bloc, with the aim of building ‘European champions’ with the scale to compete with foreign industry giants.

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Press Release

Nokia and Orange today announced a new collaboration focused on developing and evaluating artificial intelligence radio access network (AI-RAN) technologies powered by Nokia’s anyRAN 5G software and NVIDIA AI infrastructure. The initiative aims to explore how emerging AI-RAN capabilities can enhance network performance, energy efficiency and enable new services for Orange customers.

Through a structured co‑innovation framework, Nokia and Orange will jointly identify, design and evaluate new AI‑RAN capabilities. The collaboration aims to explore how a GPU-based radio processor can boost radio performance with more advanced receivers, and how AI can be tightly integrated into the RAN to further improve performance, support new services such as sensing, and bring greater automation and intelligence to both cloud-based and purpose‑built RAN environments.

“Orange is committed to building more efficient, adaptable and sustainable networks. By collaborating with Nokia and NVIDIA on AI‑RAN, we can better understand how the AI-native architecture enabled by AI-RAN can improve the efficiency of key radio algorithms — such as scheduling, beamforming and power optimization — enhancing both spectral efficiency and energy performance, while also enabling advanced capabilities like predictive optimization and radio sensing. This collaboration is an important step in our long‑term network strategy,” said Laurent Leboucher, Group CTO, Orange.