Openreach Hit Welsh Milestone as £210m Ultrafast Broadband Network Reaches 700,000 Premises

Openreach , 13th July 2023

More than 700,000 homes and businesses across Wales can already order some of the fastest, most reliable broadband in Europe thanks to a £210 million(1) investment by Openreach.

And more areas are set to benefit, as engineers are now starting work to extend the full fibre network even further to most homes and businesses in areas such as Pencoed, Porthmadog, Criccieth and Llangennech.

This milestone, that’s seen more than 200,000 Welsh properties gaining access to ultrafast broadband over 12 months, demonstrates Openreach's commitment to narrowing the digital divide and ensuring that communities throughout Wales have access to cutting-edge internet infrastructure.

Full fibre is up to 16 times faster than the average UK broadband connection and around five times more reliable than the old copper-based network it’s replacing.

Welcoming Openreach’s investment Welsh Government Economy Minister, Vaughan Gething, said:

“I’d like to congratulate Openreach on reaching the impressive milestone of connecting 700,000 homes and businesses across the country to fast and reliable broadband.

“The Welsh Government, through our Digital Strategy for Wales, is determined to work with the telecommunications industry to support the public sector, businesses and homes in Wales receive the connectivity they need to engage in digital activities.

“Broadband is a key utility and we’ll continue to support all efforts to boost connections the length and breadth of Wales.”.

The deployment of full fibre broadband represents a transformative upgrade to the existing network infrastructure, offering lightning-fast internet speeds and unparalleled reliability.

Openreach's dedication to future-proofing Wales' digital landscape is paving the way for a thriving digital economy, enabling businesses to compete globally and individuals to fully harness the benefits of digital services.

Martin Williams, Partnership Director for Openreach in Wales, said:

“Connecting 700,000 properties in Wales with access to full fibre broadband is an incredible achievement that showcases Openreach's unwavering commitment to building a digitally inclusive nation. Over the last 12 months we’ve been expanding our network to just under 4,000 properties every week. That’s the equivalent of connecting a town the size of Haverfordwest or St Asaph every single week.

“Our engineers are out in all kinds of weather across every part of Wales – both urban and rural – to build a network that is not only essential to the future prosperity of our country enabling businesses to compete globally and individuals to fully harness the benefits of digital services.

“It’s worth remembering that upgrades aren’t automatic. People need to place an order with their chosen providers to get connected and we’ll do the rest. Our network offers the widest choice of providers such as BT, Sky, TalkTalk, Vodafone and Zen – which means people have lots of choice and can get a great deal.

“Even if you already have a decent enough service, it’s worth checking if you can upgrade, because full fibre is the future, and it provides the best broadband experience at great value for money. There’ll be no more worrying that your video call might freeze, or your files are failing to upload when everyone’s at home competing for bandwidth at the same time.”

In addition to Openreach’s commercial build across Wales – which is part of a £15 billion UK-wide investment – the network provider has also been working with the Welsh Government to bring Full Fibre broadband to thousands of additional homes in the very hardest to reach parts of Wales.

About Openreach in Wales

With a workforce of around 2,300 in Wales, Openreach already employs the nation’s largest team of telecoms engineers and professionals.

Recent research by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr) highlighted the clear economic benefits of connecting everyone in Wales to full fibre. It estimated this would create a £2 billion boost to the Welsh economy.

This short video explains what Full Fibre technology is and you can find out more about our Fibre First programme, latest availability and local plans here.

Erbyn hyn mae dros 700,000 cartref a busnes yng Nghymru yn gallu archebu gwasanaeth band eang ymhlith y mwyaf cyflym a dibynadwy yn Ewrop, yn dilyn buddsoddiad gwerth £210 miliwn gan Openreach.

A bydd mwy o ardaloedd yn elwa, gyda’r peirianwyr yn awr yn dechrau gwaith i ymestyn y rhwydwaith ffeibr cyflawn hyd yn oed ymhellach i wasanaethu’r rhan fwyaf o gartrefi a busnesau yn ardaloedd fel Pencoed, Porthmadog, Cricieth a Langennech.

Mae’n dangos ymrwymiad Openreach i ostwng y bwlch digidol a sicrhau bod cymunedau drwy Gymru yn gallu cysylltu â’r rhwydweithiau rhyngrwyd diweddaraf.

Bydd ffeibr cyflawn yn cynnig gwasanaeth hyd at 16 gwaith yn gyflymach na chysylltiad band eang cyfartalog y Deyrnas Unedig, a thua pum gwaith yn fwy dibynadwy na’r hen rwydwaith copr.

Wrth groesawu buddsoddiad Openreach, dywedodd Gweinidog Economi Llywodraeth Cymru, Vaughan Gething:

“Hoffwn longyfarch Openreach ar gyrraedd y garreg filltir o gysylltu 700,000 o gartrefi a busnesau ledled y wlad â band eang cyflym a dibynadwy.

"Mae Llywodraeth Cymru, drwy ein Strategaeth Ddigidol i Gymru, yn benderfynol o weithio gyda'r diwydiant telathrebu i gefnogi'r sector cyhoeddus, busnesau a chartrefi yng Nghymru i dderbyn y cysylltedd sydd ei angen arnynt i gymryd rhan mewn gweithgareddau digidol.

"Mae band eang yn gyfleustod allweddol a byddwn yn parhau i gefnogi pob ymdrech i hybu cysylltiadau ar hyd a lled Cymru."

Bydd darparu band eang ffeibr cyflawn yn trawsnewid ein rhwydwaith wrth gynnig cysylltiadau rhyngrwyd tra-chyflym a gwasanaeth dibanadwy iawn. Bydd ymroddiad Openreach i ddiogelu dyfodol seilwaith digidol Cymru yn helpu i gynnal economi digidol llewyrchus, gan alluogi busnesau i gystadlu ar draws y byd a helpu unigolion i elwa o holl adnoddau gwasanaethau digidol.

Dywedodd Martin Williams, Cyfarwyddwr Partneriaethau Openreach Cymru:

“Mae darparu cysylltiad band eang ffeibr cyflawn ar gyfer 700,000 cartref a busnes yng Nghymru yn gamp aruthrol sy’n adlewyrchu ymroddiad Openreach i adeiladu cenedl ddigidol. Dros y 12 mis diwethaf rydym wedi bod yn ehangu ein rhwydwaith i ychydig o dan 4,000 eiddo bob wythnos. Mae hynny'n cyfateb i gysylltu tref maint Hwlffordd neu Llanelwy bob wythnos.

“Bydd ein peirianwyr yn gweithio mewn pob math o dywydd ar draws y wlad gyfan - ardaloedd trefol a gwledig - er mwyn adeiladu rhwydwaith hanfodol er helpu’r wlad i ffynnu, gan alluogi busnesau i gystadlu’n fyd-eang a helpu unigolion i elwa o wasanaethau digidol.

“Mae’n werth nodi na fydd pobl yn derbyn uwchraddiad yn otomatig. Bydd rhaid i bobl osod archeb gyda’r cwmni o’u dewis a byddwn ni’n gwneud y gweddill. Mae ein rhwydwaith yn cynnig y dewis mwyaf eang o gwmnïau gwasanaeth, fel BT, Sky, TalkTalk, Vodafone a Zen - sy’n golygu mwy o ddewis a chyfle i gael bargen.

“Hyd yn oed os yw eich gwasanaeth presennol yn dderbyniol, bydd yn werth holi os allwch uwchraddio oherwydd ffeibr cyflawn yw technoleg y dyfodol, wrth gynnig y band eang gorau am yr arian. Wrth ei gael byddwch yn osgoi problemau gyda galwadau fideo, neu fethu llwytho ffeiliau pan fydd pawb yn y cartref yn cystadlu am wasanaeth ar yr un pryd.”

Yn ogystal â gwaith masnachol Openreach yng Nghymru - sef rhan o fuddsoddiad gwerth £15 biliwn ar draws y Deyrnas Unedig - mae’r cwmni wedi cydweithio â Llywodraeth Cymru i gynnig band eang ffeibr cyflawn i filoedd o gartrefi ychwanegol mewn rhai o’r ardaloedd mwyaf anodd eu cyrraedd.

Openreach Cymru

Gyda gweithlu o oddeutu 2,300 yng Nghymru, mae Openreach eisoes yn cyflogi tîm peirianwyr a gweithwyr cysylltiedig mwyaf y genedl.

Ymchwil diweddar gan CEBR (Centre for Economics and Business Research) wedi tanlinellu’r buddion economaidd clir o gysylltu pawb yng Nghymru â ffeibr cyflawn. Amcangyfrifwyd byddai’n rhoi hwb gwerth £2 biliwn i economi Cymru.

Dyma fideo byr yn esbonio technoleg ffeibr cyflawn a gallwch ddysgu mwy am ein rhaglen Ffeibr Gyntaf, ein darpariaethau diweddaraf a’n cynlluniau lleol yma.