Fibrus and Ogi Linked to Talks Over Possible UK Broadband Consolidation

A number of sources have recently indicated to ISPreview that two Infracapital-backed alternative UK broadband networks, Fibrus and Ogi, have allegedly been engaged in talks over a possible future consolidation. The move, if indeed it does materialise, would create a single full fibre (FTTP) network covering around 600,000 premises and reaching over 160,000 customers.

Readers will already be aware that many altnet builders have, over the past few years, come under significant pressure from a mix of issues, such as the increasingly competitive environment and rising costs (e.g. high build costs, high interest rates, rising electricity bills etc.). In response, we’ve often seen new network builds slow or stall, usually followed by redundancies, as altnets switch to focus on commercialisation. Both Ogi and Fibrus have experienced some of this to different degrees (example).

Despite this, both operators have managed to grow a strong to modest degree of network reach and have seen rising take-up (e.g. Fibrus just passed 30%). Ogi’s Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network, which is home to over 20,000 customers, can mainly be found covering over 118,000 premises in South Wales (and a small part of England).

By comparison, Fibrus, which has 142,000 customers, covers over 465,000 homes – more than 330,000 of those are in Northern Ireland, with the rest being found in Cumbria (England). Fibrus also holds two sizeable and ongoing Project Gigabit broadband roll-out contracts with the UK government for parts of Northern Ireland and Cumbia.

Quick Summary of Financial Accounts

Ogi to end of December 2024

Ogi’s parent company, Spectrum Fibre Limited, last year published their annual accounts and reported a turnover of £7.8m (2023: £4.2m), although the company also made a loss for the financial year of -£32.9m (2023: -£26.8m). The company also reported total assets less current liabilities of £102.6m (2023: £110.6m), albeit with net liabilities of -£88.2m (2023: -£55.2m).

Fibrus to end of March 2025

Fibrus’ accounts showed annual revenues rose by 67% to £29.5m (2024: £17.6m) and positive EBITDA of £1.5m (2024: -£11.8m), although they also made a net loss for the year of -£57.6m (2024: £53.4m) and had net liabilities of -£62m (2024: -£4.67m).

Suffice to say that both operators have a strong focus on rural broadband coverage, with zero overbuild between them, and are primarily owned and backed by Infracapital, the infrastructure equity investment arm of M&G Plc. Put another way, we were not surprised when various sources started informing us that Fibrus and Ogi had allegedly held discussions over a possible M&A (Mergers and Acquisitions) deal.

A spokesperson from Ogi told ISPreview:

“Having delivered a large-scale network build programme and connected communities at pace, Ogi is now entering a more mature phase of its development. As part of that, the business continues to explore opportunities in the market to drive further scale and create long-term value, which may include merging with others, if it makes strategic sense to do so.”

A spokesperson for Fibrus told ISPreview:

“After delivering a highly successful full fibre build across Northern Ireland and Cumbria, Fibrus, like most of the altnet sector is open to exploring all opportunities that could generate a more scaled and sustainable future for our customers, our company and our investors.”

The caveat being that talks between altnets are quite common in this environment and it’s presently unclear whether an agreement will emerge. At the time of writting neither side has denied that such discussions took place, but nor are they confirming it. In any case such an agreement would seem viable and could potentioally also support future consolidation among Infracapital’s other networks (e.g. Gigaclear and WightFibre). Infracapital also back Neos Networks, but that’s a very different kettle of fish.

We should point out that this isn’t the only sector gossip to be reaching our ears of late, with some sources also hinting that Voneus and Airband may have held similar talks, although we’d not had as many reports about that one. But both operators will almost certainly be considering consolidation, just as most altnets currently are.