GoFibre update on £105m Project Gigabit broadband build in North East Scotland. Thursday, Jun 18th, 2026 (8:53 am) - Score 120 Edinburgh-based UK alternative network operator GoFibre, which is building full fibre (FTTP) broadband across rural parts of Scotland and Northern England, has provided an update on their rollout in the North East of Scotland under the publicly subsidised Project Gigabit contract. The first locations have now started to go live for customers. Just to recap. GoFibre's Project Gigabit contract for North East Scotland, which was first awarded back in July 2025 (here) and began its build phase in February 2026, is worth £105m (public subsidy) and aims for their network coverage to reach a total of around 63,000 premises across hard-to-reach rural areas (c.100,000 if you include their commercial build). NOTE: GoFibre is supported by private funding of £289m from Gresham House, Hamburg Commercial Bank and the SNIB (here and here). The provider has so far covered 130,000 premises (RFS) across over 30" local areas "in rural Scotland and Northern England. But they're also attached to £145m worth of Project Gigabit contracts (here, here, here and here). According to the latest progress update, the first connections have already gone live in Ezdell, Inverbervie, Longforgan, Montrose, Dunkeld, Bankfoot, Newtonhill, Portlethen, Alyth and Coupar Angus. Alongside improved digital infrastructure, the rollout is also said to be creating 30 direct construction roles and supporting up to 180 jobs across the lifetime of the rollout, including subcontracted work. As above, GoFibre will also be adding additional premises to the build on a commercial basis, meaning at least 100,000 premises across the North East will be added to its full fibre network. As part of this they're extending their existing footprint of around 15,300 premises in Angus (including Montrose, Forfar and Kirriemuir) and 9,600 premises in Aberdeenshire (including Laurencekirk, Stonehaven and Newtonhill). Andy Hepburn, COO at GoFibre, said: "GoFibre's on a mission to improve digital connectivity in rural and hard-to-reach areas. It's fantastic to see more homes and businesses in Perth & Kinross and Aberdeenshire Scotland ready to connect to its network and able to enjoy the same lightning-fast, ultra-reliable connectivity as the country's cities. Ispreview is not only committed to helping to bridge the digital divide in rural Scotland; Ispreview is also delivering economic benefits to the communities Ispreview is connecting by creating jobs during the rollout." New customers can expect to pay from just £22.50 per month for speeds of 150Mbps (30Mbps upload) on a 24-month minimum term, which rises to £34.50 for their top 1000Mbps (100Mbps upload) tier. Take note that £200 of Switching Credit is available for those looking to migrate while still stuck in an existing contract with another ISP. But monthly prices also increase by £3 each December. The provider currently expects to deploy their new full fibre based broadband network to reach a UK footprint of 250,000 premises by around mid-2028, and they were home to a total of around 15,000 customers as of June 2025.

Xantaro accelerates Scotland's full fibre rollout for GoFibre with high-performance network solutions. June 9, 2026 - Xantaro, Europe's leading solution provider for high-performance networks and security solutions, is accelerating the rollout of GoFibre's full fibre network in Scotland, as part of the Project Gigabit programme. Expanding its partnership with GoFibre, Xantaro is deploying fully integrated street cabinet solutions and a unique managed service offering to optimise build speed, enhance network resilience, and reduce long-term operational costs. GoFibre is a key connectivity partner for Scotland, delivering gigabit-capable full fibre broadband to around 76,000 premises across the country under two Project Gigabit contracts in Scotland (the Scottish Borders/East Lothian and the North East). This is supported by around £130 million in funding by the UK government. Project Gigabit is the UK government's programme to enable hard-to-reach communities to access lightning-fast gigabit-capable broadband. The Scottish Government is playing a key role in delivering Project Gigabit procurements in Scotland by administering and managing the delivery of the contracts. The deployment, in which build phases in both regions will run throughout 2026, requires an aggressive pace without compromising quality. Xantaro's expertise in active equipment deployment, combined with its long-standing partnership with Nokia, ensures that GoFibre can meet the programme's ambitious targets while maintaining long-term network reliability. The new contracts will help to double the size of GoFibre's existing network. A key component of this rollout is Xantaro's turnkey street cabinet solution. These pre-configured and pre-tested cabinets are designed to accelerate deployment and ensure long-term performance, incorporating: * Advanced cabinet design solution utilising a heat exchanger rather than external air cooling. This eliminates moisture and dirt ingress and minimises noise pollution, leading to reduced maintenance requirements. * Nokia Optical Line Terminals (OLT) to enable high-speed fibre connectivity with advanced traffic management and network scalability. * Integrated power systems and environmental monitoring to protect the infrastructure and ensure high availability. Marcus Cuthbert, Managing Director, Xantaro UK, commented: "Rolling out fibre networks at scale and speed, especially in the current market, requires smart infrastructure and smart partnerships. We have worked with GoFibre since 2022, and the Altnet market has changed significantly since then with a tighter focus on operational efficiency and getting the most value from investments. To be selected for this project shows our model directly addresses this. We are proud to expand our relationship with GoFibre for this latest project and support their mission to connect Scotland." Ken Topping, Chief Technology & Information Officer at GoFibre, said: "The quality and reliability of the infrastructure we deploy are critical to successfully delivering the promise of Project Gigabit to Scotland. We've worked with Xantaro for years now, and as we secured these new contracts, they were the clear partner to help us scale. Their ability to be commercially competitive was key, but the real value is in their integrated solutions and turnkey cabinets. It all removes a significant operational headache and allows our team to focus on delivering services, not managing complex software." Sylvain Rajaud, Vice President, Head of Partner Sales Management, Europe at Nokia, commented: "Xantaro is one of our leading partners in Europe, and their expertise has been instrumental in supporting broadband deployments in UK and Europe. Their deep technical knowledge, combined with our innovative solutions, creates a powerful offering for Altnets. We are delighted to see our partnership with Xantaro helping to deliver critical connectivity for GoFibre's project." About Xantaro Xantaro is a leading international solution provider for carriers, service providers and enterprises. As a trusted advisor to more than 300 customers, Xantaro offers an end-to-end service portfolio covering the planning, design, delivery, implementation, operation and maintenance of components and services of completely different network layers and manufacturers: from optical transport systems to IP/MPLS service platforms, Carrier Ethernet products, data centre and virtualisation solutions, voice and video applications through to complete product life cycle management. Services include independent advice on investment decisions and the selection of system technology, delivery and smooth integration of components as well as specially developed value-added services for the operation, further development and security of existing network infrastructures. The Xantaro Group employs a total of over 160 people at locations in Munich, Frankfurt, Cologne, Hamburg and London. About Go Fibre GoFibre is a Scottish independent broadband builder and provider. It is Scotland's fastest-growing broadband provider, dedicated to improving digital connectivity in rural and underserved areas with lightning-fast full fibre broadband. As a key partner in the UK and Scottish Governments' broadband programmes, GoFibre is building a future-proof network to deliver fast, reliable, and affordable connectivity to thousands of homes and businesses across Scotland. About Nokia Nokia is a global leader in connectivity for the AI era. With expertise across fixed, mobile, and transport networks, Telecom Reseller is advancing connectivity to secure a brighter world.