The Spanish subsidiaries of operator groups Vodafone and Orange will co-invest in fibre to the home (FTTH) deployment in Spain, the former has announced. The two intend to reach six million households and workplaces across 50 major cities by September 2017.

They aim to provide FTTH to 800,000 households and workplaces by March 2014. three million households and workplaces by September 2015; and six million households and workplaces by 2017 – a residential penetration level of around 40 per cent.

Under the terms of the agreement, Vodafone and Orange will each deploy street-level fibre in complementary geographies. The fibre will be owned independently but will share the same technical specifications to ensure compatibility as a single network. Each partner will have guaranteed access to the whole infrastructure, according to Vodafone.

The companies will also each deploy their own in-building fibre, guaranteeing access to each other, and will together request access to any third party vertical infrastructure.

The combined capital expenditure is expected to reach €1bn. Vodafone and Orange believe the agreement will increase fibre deployment efficiencies and maximise returns on investment for both operators. The agreement is also open to third parties willing to co-invest.

“This agreement demonstrates Vodafone’s commitment to provide high-speed unified communications services to our customers coupled with our willingness to invest when there are positive returns,” said Vodafone Chief Executive for the Southern Europe region, Paolo Bertoluzzo.