In January 2020, we proposed our approach to pricing wholesale local access (WLA) services in the UK excluding Hull. For areas considered to be less competitive – Geographic Area 3 – we proposed having cost-based prices using a regulatory asset base (RAB) approach which would allow BT to recover any fibre network investments that it makes.
Under the proposed RAB approach, the investment costs of deploying a fibre network would be added to BT’s asset base and recovered over all customers, fibre-based and copper-based, in Area 3.
Since publishing our proposals in January, Openreach has committed to extend its fibre network to 3.2 million properties in Area 3. This document sets out our proposed approach to regulation in Area 3, in light of this commitment.
Update 11 September 2020 – clarifications
In response to stakeholder queries, we have today published clarifications (PDF, 127.1 KB) to our consultation on pricing wholesale local access services in Geographic Area 3 with a BT commitment to deploy a fibre network.
Main documents
Supporting documents
Our approach to modelling is outlined in Annex 2. We have published two models:
Our models include relevant outputs from our bottom-up fibre model published in January 2020; and relevant outputs from an adjusted CPI-X model published in January 2020. The adjustments to the January 2020 CPI-X model are outlined in Annex 2. You can download our January 2020 models (ZIP, 95.1 MB).