Telefonica has committed to completing a full migration from copper to fiber by 2024, thus ending a program that began in 2016, according to Spanish newspaper Ruetir. The telco has informed the National Market and Competition Commission (Comision Nacional de los Mercados) y la Competencia (CNMC) pointing out that the closure of copper exchanges has accelerated in recent years, with 8,526 existing copper exchanges now having set dates for their closure, of which 2,911 are due to close by the end of this year. In addition, the company announced a closure date of May 29, 2024 for the most problematic area: San Sebastian/San Marcial.
Until now, local regulations in the historic city of San Sebastian have prohibited the laying of fiber optics to replace the city's copper portion. However, following negotiations with the San Sebastian City Council to find a solution, a plan was agreed whereby the City Council would be responsible for the deployment of the fiber optic conduit, while the three operators that would subsequently share the infrastructure would Handling all other components.
TeleGeography's CommsUpdate previously reported that Telefonica will deactivate a total of 800 copper exchanges in 2022, up from 700 in 2021, bringing the total number of exchanges closed since 2015 to 2,200. At the time, the telco said it was aiming to shut down its copper network by April 2024, the company said.
