CityFibre identifies £38bn economic benefit potential of rollout

CityFibre’s full fibre network may bring £38bn in economic benefits over a fifteen-year period, according to research by Hatch.

This includes £22bn in productivity benefits, £4.8bn from a widened workforce and £1.2bn from flexible working as well as over creating over 16,000 jobs.

CityFibre’s networks may unlock £53bn from 5G services, £16bn from IoT and £9.3bn from Smart City initiatives.

The shift from copper to fibre networks is also set to save more than 2m tonnes of CO2 emissions and add £15bn to the value of connected homes.

The north of England is identified as the region that will benefit the most, with a possible £8bn in productivity and innovation gains, £1.5bn from a widened workforce, £410m in Local Authority efficiency savings and £4bn in increased house value.

Greg Mesch, Chief Executive at CityFibre, said: “Digital infrastructure competition is driving billions of pounds of private investment from incumbents and challengers and every pound spent is unlocking economic growth, new jobs and more efficient public services in some of the most deprived parts of the country.”