The Polish telecom and energy company is using funds from the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (KPO) to build fibre in non-commercial areas
Polish energy company and fibre wholesaler Tauron has signed up 12 operators to provide services on its fibre network built as part of the investment with the government’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (KPO). The KPO is Poland’s strategy to revitalise its economy following the COVID-19 pandemic. Tauron is actively participating in projects funded by the KPO.
The company is constructing a fiber network to expand broadband internet access, particularly in areas previously lacking digital connectivity. Last year, the operator announced it would expand its network in the Silesian and Lower Silesian provinces. Projects within the scope of the KPO will be implemented until June 30, 2026. Ultimately, the program is to cover 450 localities located in 58 communes in southern Poland. The total amount of funding from the KPO is over PLN 85 million.
This investment involves the construction of over 2,000 km of a modern xPON fiber-optic network, which will be integrated into the existing infrastructure of the Tauron Group. Residents will have access to speeds ranging from 300/100Mbps to 1000/200Mbps, and address points marked as SED – socio-economic driver or in plain-speak, users requiring services with the highest parameters – will have symmetrical links of 1000/1000Mbps.
At the time, Tauron said its fibre network could reach 126,000 households in 900 locations.
At the end of 2022, Tauron completed the construction of fiber infrastructure in the last of the seven competition areas under the Digital Poland Operational Program (POPC), which aimed to get households to at least 30Mbps. The project was implemented in seven competition areas: Krakow C and Tarnów B, Katowice and Tychy, Rybnik, Sosnowiec, Oświęcim, Wałbrzych A and Wałbrzych B.
Tauron said it aims to eliminate the so-called white spots, i.e. to extend broadband internet coverage to households and educational institutions where the available bandwidth has not exceeded 30 Mbps so far.
The 12 operators
The sale of services on Tauron’s newly built network under KPO was launched in December 2024 – currently, 12 telecommunications operators can provide services to residents: Orange, Play, GFX Labs, Ilios-System, FIBER OPTIC NETWORKS, BATEX, ClimaxNet, RFC Internet, IBS Electronics, NETGATE, Euler-Soft and 4Net.
Tauron is gradually expanding its reach to other areas, and the number of service providers operating on the network will grow. Currently, there are more than 151,000 within the range of Tauron’s fibre in three provinces – Silesia, Lower Silesia and Lesser Poland. After the completion of the infrastructure construction within the KPO, Tauron said it will cover over 32,000 new premises.
The maximum available bandwidth in a household is currently 1000 Mbps but the operator said that with the development of the network, the throughputs will increase.