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Strategic report
OCU Group | Annual report and financial statements 2025
Governance
Financial statements
Market opportunity
Digital Infrastructure
Mobile networks: 5G densification and small cells Mobile infrastructure investment remains robust as operators expand 5G coverage and capacity. All four mobile network operators have deployed 5G across the country, with at least one operator now offering outdoor 5G service to an estimated 85–93% of UK premises. The number of active
Digital infrastructure support As both fixed and wireless networks scale up, demand is rising for specialised civil engineering services to support digital infrastructure. Construction techniques like horizontal directional drilling (HDD) are being widely employed to lay fibre and power cables underground with minimal disruption. HDD and tunnelling expertise have become essential for difficult installs. More broadly, the industry’s large civil engineering contractors are engaged in everything from duct installation and pole placements to site excavation for new mobile masts. Data centre infrastructure At the same time, the UK is experiencing an acceleration in data centre construction, which presents another growth avenue for infrastructure service providers. Hyperscale cloud operators and co-location providers are investing heavily in UK data centres to support skyrocketing demand for cloud computing and AI. The government’s latest figures highlight over £6.3bn of new foreign investment commitments in 2024 alone, bringing total investment in UK data centres to over £25bn since 2019.
New hyperscale campuses are under development in Greater London and Oxfordshire, alongside a proliferation of regional ‘edge’ data centres aimed at improving latency outside Greater London. All these framework projects require significant civil and utilities support, from building the physical facilities and electrical grid connections to installing backup power, cooling infrastructure, and diverse fibre routes. Services businesses with telecoms expertise are well positioned to benefit from this trend, as data centre build‑outs often span multiple years. Importantly, the digital infrastructure sector’s various segments reinforce each other: extensive fibre networks and resilient power grids are key enablers for data centres, while new data hubs drive further local fibre and utility upgrades.
The UK has seen thousands of 4G/5G small cells (compact low-power antennas on street furniture) to fill coverage gaps and boost capacity. Local authorities are facilitating this growth by adopting standard site agreements and streamlined street-work permits for deploying masts and rooftop equipment. The proliferation of small cells and infill sites is driving extensive street-level works, and enabling ultra-low-latency connectivity crucial for advanced 5G services. Overall, Britain’s mobile infrastructure push, including ongoing 5G rollouts, network sharing ventures, and eventual 5G-Advanced upgrades, underpins a stable, long-term rollout pipeline. OCU continues to support clients in the installation of small cells; below is an example of a project in London.
5G deployments has jumped to over 18,500 sites as of late 2023 (up from ~12,000 in 2022), reflecting rapid rollout. In parallel, 4G coverage is nearing its peak (roughly 93% of UK land area via at least one provider), and the industry’s ‘Shared Rural Network’ initiative is on track to raise 4G geographic coverage to 95% by 2025, improving mobile access in rural and remote zones. To meet ever-growing data demand, operators are densifying their networks, especially in urban centres, through new macro cell sites and dense small cell deployments.
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