At the end of December, the Storting set the broadband development concession at 362,7 million NOK. This is an increase of almost NOK 60 million from 2022.

– Access to broadband is crucial for businesses, housing and jobs, both in central and rural areas. Broadband for all is therefore a prerequisite for reaping the great societal benefits of digitalisation, says Gjelsvik.

The government's goal is for everyone to have access to a high-speed broadband connection in 2025. It is particularly important that municipalities located less centrally in the country are a priority in development.

The subsidy facilitates the development of broadband access

The Broadband Support Scheme is a partnership between municipalities, the state and contractors. It is required that communes/voivodeships contribute an amount corresponding to at least 30% of state contribution. The participation of the contractor is determined by public announcement of the project.

For the majority investments in mobile and broadband networks in Norway private contractors are responsible. In 2021, over NOK 13 billion was invested in this infrastructure, of which over NOK 8 billion was invested in the fixed-line network. Government subsidy facilitates the development of broadband access in areas where there is no commercial basis for such development.

In addition to the NOK 362,7 million allocated for 2023, some county municipalities have requested permission to use funds from previous years in the 2023 program. Previous EU legislation that applied to development has challenged many development projects. The Ministry has made preparations for this, which means that county councils have a total of around NOK 600 million to use under the 2023 scheme.

Source: regjeringen

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