Traditional and not-so-traditional operators continue to deploy their fiber optics, but the digital divide that exists in rural Spain continues to be an issue to be addressed. In these that the Government has now awarded a new aid to Hispasat with which to bring Internet to many of these areas.
Hispasat has been the one that has achieved the award with 76 million euros that will be allocated to the deployment of high-speed Internet in rural areas where there is currently no infrastructure. This aid is part of the UNICO-Rural Demand program with which it is intended that by 2025 the entire Spanish population will have a connection of at least 100 Mbps.
Rates of 35 euros per month and a minimum speed of 50 Mbps
As we already said, it is Hispasat that has obtained the award from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation. However, is a provisional resolution, given that the appeal period is still open. Bidders such as Avatel, Reditel Wimax and Gurbtec Iguana Telecom have seen their offers rejected, but the Redeia group’s offer had been accepted.
In the Hispasat plans there is the idea of dedicating 40 million aid to deploy and develop the infrastructure. On the other hand, the remaining 36 million euros will go to aid for the registration of the end user.
Another important fact is that these aids may be used to subsidize up to 600 euros in the installation of the necessary equipment, given that satellite connectivity usually requires a higher cost than that of installations in areas with fiber coverage. Here, individuals, the self-employed, SMEs and non-profit entities can benefit in order to provide Internet in municipal services such as town halls, libraries and other public places.
For the end user there will be a flat rate of 35 euros with which you can have a speed of 50 Mbps minimum and up to 100 Mbps. This flat rate will be in force until December 31, 2027. In any case, new awards of this type are expected in order to follow the Digital Spain 2026 Agenda and the UNICO-Rural Demand program that we mentioned at the beginning.
Via | The Moncloa | Information
Cover Image | QuickPS on Unsplash | PublicDomainVectors