Analysys Mason is acting as the Lenders’ Technical Advisor on a FTTH PIN in two areas of France

The problem

• In 2008, Syndicat Mixte Ardèche Drôme Numérique, a combined local authority of two French departments, selected a consortium led by Axione to deploy and operate a broadband public initiative network (PIN), which was then extended into a fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) PIN in 2016
• Analysys Mason was commissioned as the Lenders’ Technical Advisor to produce the refinancing report required for the FTTH roll-out. In 2018, Analysys Mason was further engaged as Lenders’ Technical Advisor to produce annual reports on the network performance (roll-out and commercialisation) over a five-year period

The solution

• The annual reports for the lenders include
  • an update on the regulation of the French broadband market
  • a review of national market trends and evolution over the past year
  • a presentation of actual revenue and drivers (mainly roll-out and subscribers)
• For the revenue drivers, we compare actual values with the business plan drivers on which debt sizing was based 
  • for any divergence, we present the lenders with the rationale behind the differences and the potential impact on the business plan
• In addition, we present the lenders with the current relationship state between the local authority and Axione

Figure: FTTH lines rolled out by operator in PIN networks in France

The result

• Our report has allowed the lenders to better understand the reasons behind the actuals produced by Axione. It has also helped Axione to inform lenders of any market or regulatory change that could impact the project