UNICO-Broadband

The Universalisation of Digital Infrastructure for Cohesion Program (UNICO) is a framework for different calls that will facilitate access throughout the whole country to ultra-fast broadband and the extension of 5G. As part of the UNICO program, UNICO-Broadband is a call for projects by telecommunications operators aiming at the deployment of high-speed broadband infrastructure capable of providing services at symmetric speeds of at least 300 Mbps, scalable at 1 Gbps. It aims to achieve a very high-capacity coverage rate for 100 % of the population in 2025.

The Universalisation of Digital Infrastructure for Cohesion Program (UNICO) is a framework for different calls that will facilitate access throughout the whole country to ultra-fast broadband and the extension of 5G. As part of the UNICO program, UNICO-Broadband is a call for projects by telecommunications operators aiming at the deployment of high-speed broadband infrastructure capable of providing services at symmetric speeds of at least 300 Mbps, scalable at 1 Gbps. It aims to achieve a very high-capacity coverage rate for 100 % of the population in 2025. 

• The first call, concluded in 2021, had a budget of EUR 250 million from the Recovery and Resilience Facility and resulted in 52 initiatives aiming at bringing ultra-fast broadband connectivity to more than one million households and businesses in 4,500 municipalities. 

• The second call, concluded in 2022, had a budget of EUR 245 million from Recovery and Resilience Facility and resulted in 50 initiatives aiming at bringing ultra-fast broadband connectivity to more than 700,000 households and businesses in 4,500 municipalities. These initiatives are spread across the country, though about half of them are concentrated in Galicia, Castile-Leon and Andalusia. 

Currently, Spain is already the third country in Europe with the best connectivity, with broadband coverage at 30 Mbps of 95 % (in rural areas 65 %) and 87 % at s speed of 100 Mbps. 

More information can be found on the website of the government on the first call here and the second call here.