Wholesale fibre broadband operator Netomnia is investing £39m in a full-fibre multi-gigabit network in Liverpool, connecting 130,000 homes and businesses and rivalling BT and Virgin Media. Tony McDonough reports

Around 130,000 homes and businesses across Liverpool will have access to a new full-fibre broadband network in a £39m investment.

Founded in 2019, Netomnia is aiming to become the third national full-fibre network operator in the UK behind BT Openreach and Virgin Media. Its investment into Liverpool will be its first network build in a major city.

Netomnia will provide fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) broadband infrastructure to around 130,000 premises in Liverpool as part of an initial phase of work. It will partner on the project with contractor MJ Quinn which also works with BT Openreach.

Access to superfast broadband is now seen as essential for economic growth. Alan O’Prey, managing director at Netomnia, said: “I’m delighted to be bringing our network to Liverpool in our first move into a major UK city.

“This is a particularly special project for me as Liverpool is my home and it’s a true pleasure for us to be able to bring ultrafast, reliable broadband access to thousands of homes and businesses in the area.

“At Netomnia we’re incredibly passionate about helping people realise their potential by giving them the seamless, ultrafast connection to all the resources the internet has to offer.”

Netomnia makes wholesale connectivity available to internet service providers (ISPs), building the infrastructure for their broadband services. Its network supports symmetrical (equal upload and download speeds) multi-gigabit services up to 10 Gbps (10,000 Mbps).

Along with its sister company YouFibre, an internet service provider, Netomnia has secured £418m in funding since 2020 to support its rollout strategy and aims to reach one million premises in 2023.

It raised £295m in April this year. The funding was led by DigitalBridge Investment Management, with additional capital provided by previous investors Soho Square Capital and Advencap.

In October 2021, Liverpool City Region Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram launched his £30m LCR Connect joint venture that will deliver broadbands speeds of 1,000mbps by 2025.

LCR Connect is 50%-owned by the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, led by Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram, in partnership with North West-based ITS Technology Group.