A new alternative broadband network provider and ISP called Shire Fibre has today surfaced with a tentative plan to build their new Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network across poorly served parts of Shropshire (England), starting with the small market town of Craven Arms (population of 2,300) and surrounding areas.
In order to do this, they’re first seeking Code Powers from Ofcom, which are typically sought to help speed-up deployments of new fibre networks and cut costs, not least by reducing the number of licences needed for street works. The powers can also help with supporting access to run new fibre via Openreach’s (BT) existing cable ducts and poles (PIA).
The new provider (company details) has two Directors, Scott and Grace Marnick, and has been setup as a new venture by civil engineering firm SAS Utilities. But at present Shire Fibre’s website is just a holding page and there’s not a lot of extra detail that can be found online about either their plans or level investment.
Launching a new altnet into an already overcrowded market, which is also under considerable strain due to high builds costs and high interest rates, is currently quite a risky endeavour. On top of that, Openreach has already built a little FTTP into Craven Arms, while Voneus seems to have done the same for most of the town.