The European Commission cleared a proposed fibre joint venture formed by Telenet Group and utility company Fluvius, with the new company expected to launch in July.

In a statement Telenet, which will hold a 66.8 per cent stake in the new business, explained with this green light, the deal forming the venture was expected to close on 1 July.

The company to be formed is currently known as NetCo and will be led by Telenet’s current special projects lead Micha Berger, who was formerly CTIO at the telecoms company.

As revealed when announcing the proposed project in July 2022, the new company will be charged with building a high speed fixed network covering the Flanders region of Belgium and parts of Brussels.

It aims to cover 78 per cent of homes in its targeted coverage area with fibre-to-the-home, with the majority of these within its first eight years of operation.

The remainder of the region covered will use an upgraded Hybrid Fiber Coax network. In total the new entity is expected to invest €2 billion. Its infrastructure will be available on a wholesale basis to other operators.