Düsseldorf takes stake in NetCologne fibre subsidiary

The city of Düsseldorf is making an investment in NetCologne fibre network subsidiary NetDüsseldorf (net.D).

Source: NetCologne

The North-Rhine Westphalia state capital and Stadtwerke Düsseldorf are acquiring a minority stake of 10% each in the Düsseldorf city network operator. The remaining 80% of net.D remains in the hands of NetCologne.

In the German Smart City Index of the industry association BITKOM, Düsseldorf now stands in 21st place, driven down by poor availability of fibre.

Currently, around 18% of Düsseldorf residents have the opportunity to use a fibre connection. The city of Düsseldorf wants to connect at least 50% of all households and companies to the fibre network by 2025. By 2030, all households and companies in Düsseldorf should be reached with fibre.

From 2024, net.D will invest in a significant expansion of its own fibre infrastructure in Düsseldorf. By marketing a mix of copper and fibre networks from other providers under open access principles, the company says it will be able to offer every Düsseldorf resident an Internet connection from January.

“We want to make Düsseldorf more digital. The leading digital cities in Germany have their own, strong municipal internet providers. By investing in net.D, we are investing in the city’s infrastructure and digital future,” said Düsseldorf’s mayor Stephan Keller.

“NetCologne started out as a city network operator almost 30 years ago and the close cooperation with the municipality has proven to be a recipe for success. Today Cologne has one of the densest fibre networks in Germany and that’s why we believe in this model for our

subsidiary NetDüsseldorf. The new brand net.D stands for 100% Düsseldorf and we are very pleased that, thanks to the city of Düsseldorf and the municipal utilities, we will have two strong partners with the same mission at our side in the future,” said Claus van der Velden, commercial director of NetCologne.

“Good internet is the prerequisite for Düsseldorf as a smart city. And it is now part of the digital services of general interest for the people of our city. That’s why I’m really looking forward to working together. net.D has the potential to improve Düsseldorf’s digital infrastructure as a smart city ‘to bring it to the forefront’,” said Julien Mounier, CEO of Stadtwerke Düsseldorf AG.