Italian energy firm Enel would consider selling a controlling stake in its fibre optic unit Enel OpEn Fiber (EOF) in 12 to 18 months’ time, according to CEO Francesco Starace. Asked whether Enel would open up EOF’s capital to dark fibre provider Metroweb, Starace said it would not allow a telco to take a stake in the unit, but added that Metroweb “does what we do” so “the talk is different”.
Italian energy firm Enel (BIT:ENEL) would consider selling a controlling stake in its fibre optic unit Enel OpEn Fiber (EOF) in 12 to 18 months’ time, according to CEO Francesco Starace.
Speaking at a hearing of the Italian senate, Starace said there are no immediate plans to cede control of the business but, once its buildout of the nationwide broadband network is well underway, it could be a possibility, local media reported.
Asked whether Enel would open up EOF’s capital to dark fibre provider Metroweb, Starace said it would not allow a telco to take a stake in the unit, but added that Metroweb “does what we do” so “the talk is different”.
Starace was keen to stress that EOF, which the partly state-owned company created late last year to build the ultra-fast network, will act as a wholesale operator, granting access to its infrastructure to telcos, and therefore will not be in competition with them, including Telecom Italia (TIM) (BIT:TIT).
The CEO told media at a government press conference in Rome earlier this month that the company is partnering with Vodafone Italia and VimpleCom’s Wind Telecomunicazioni on the €2.5bn (US$2.8bn) project, and would like TIM to participate too.
Vodafone, Wind and Metroweb had previously discussed building out a nationwide fibre optic network. They had invited TIM to participate as a partner but the incumbent has said it wants to lead its own plan. TIM said in February that it was aiming to reach 84% fibre coverage by 2018.
Last week, news emerged that Enel was in advanced talks to merge EOF with Metroweb, which TIM is also targeting. Enel and Metroweb, which reportedly wants control of the merged entity, both declined to comment on the matter.
At the hearing, Starace said EOF plans to extend the network to 224 cities within 30 months, with or without Metroweb. He insisted that the plan is achievable even if Metroweb ties up with TIM.
Enel was not immediately available for comment.