BT to bring gigabit broadband to hard-to-reach Swansea Bay areas

BT has announced the signing of a £9.8m contract to deliver full-fibre broadband access to nearly 1,800 hard-to-reach sites across the Swansea Bay City Region.

The deal is part of the Better Broadband Infill Project by Swansea Bay City Deal’s Digital Infrastructure Programme, which will be delivered in close partnership with BT’s broadband provision division, Openreach.

Funded by the UK government, Welsh government, public sector and the private sector, the Swansea Bay City Deal will see what is described as an “unprecedented” investment of up to £1.3bn across a portfolio of nine headline programmes and projects delivering a total of 36 individual projects throughout South West Wales.

The ambition of the Swansea Bay City Deal partners is to deliver key benefits to the region over a 15-year period, with the programmes and projects based on three key themes: economic acceleration; life science and well-being; and energy, smart manufacturing and digital.

The project is led by four local authorities – Carmarthenshire Council, Neath Port Talbot Council, Pembrokeshire Council and Swansea Council – together with the Swansea Bay and Hywel Dda University Health Boards, Swansea University, the University of Wales Trinity Saint David, and private sector partners.

The Better Broadband Infill Project is set to start in May 2025, and will continue its delivery across the region over six phases, with the first 220 premises connected by December 2025 with a final completion date of 31 March 2027. 

BT says it will bring full-fibre broadband access to 1,533 premises and an additional 256 sites across the four counties in the Swansea Bay City Region: Pembrokeshire, Swansea, Neath Port Talbot and Carmarthenshire.

The homes and businesses included in the scheme are predominantly in harder to reach, rural areas where BT said the cost to provide faster broadband services is considerably higher. The development will specifically target premises that currently have broadband speeds of less than 30Mbps and who are not in scope for any other government-funded fibre expansion projects or part of commercial build plans.

“This project is a game-changer for our region,” said Rob Stewart, leader of Swansea Council and chair of the Swansea Bay City Deal Joint Committee.

“By bringing high-speed internet to areas that have been left behind, we are not only improving quality of life, but also opening up new opportunities for economic and social development,” he said. “Access to reliable broadband is no longer a luxury; it’s a necessity. This project will ensure that everyone in the Swansea Bay region can participate fully in the digital age.”

Susi Marston, head of public sector for Wales at BT, added: “Connectivity is at the heart of how people live and work today, but all of that relies on the right infrastructure being in place. The Better Broadband Infill Project will improve services for thousands of people across the Swansea Bay City Region, who will benefit from state-of-the-art connectivity even in hard-to-reach areas.”