Gigabit Infrastructure Act and modernization of digital networks : how does the new framework applicable in France work ?

From the 2014 to the opening of one-stop shops in 2026 : a look back at 10 formative years

The Gigabit Infrastructure Act (GIA), ou Regulation (UE) 2024/1309, marks a major step forward in moderning access to digital networks in Europe. But to understand what is changing today, we need to go back ten years. 

• May 15, 2014 - Directive 2014/61/EU
  First European directive on reducing the costs of deploying ultra-fast broadband. Mainly focused on fiber optics. It encourages infrastructure sharing but leaves considerable room for interpretation by Member States (principle of EU “directives” versus “regulations”).
• July 20, 2020 - EU Regulation 2020/1070 
  This regulation is a first attempt to replicate in Europe an adaptation of the 2018 FCC regulation, the “Small Cell Order 18-133.” The Commission renames Small Cells as SAWAPs, Small-Area Wireless Access Points, and adopts the concept of Small Cell Facilities, defining a volume of 30L for radio stations. This regulation defines very little.
• 2020-2023 - Acceleration of uses
  Explosion in demand: 5G, IoT, fiber, smart cities. The EU realizes that the 2014 directive is no longer sufficient and that the 2020 regulation, which is limited in scope, has had no real impact. Europe notes an investment deficit in the sector estimated at more than €65 billion per year.
• April 29, 2024 - Adoption of the GIA (EU Regulation 2024/1309)
  The European Union revises the 2014 directive and extends it with a regulation that is directly applicable in all European countries.
  The aim is to harmonize, simplify, and accelerate the deployment of gigabit networks (fiber + small cells).
  This text now governs access to public infrastructure: street lighting poles, street furniture, buildings, manholes, and ducts.
• July 2, 2025 - Draft amendment to the Postal and Electronic Communications Code
  The Directorate-General for Enterprise (DGE) publishes a draft amendment to the Postal and Electronic Communications Code (CPCE) with a national application date for the decree of May 12, 2026.
• November 12, 2025 - Application of the GIA throughout the EU
  From this date, operators can request access to local authorities' infrastructure (including EP masts), which must respond:
  • within 10 days to requests for information,
  • within 1 month to requests for access,
  • with the possibility of justified refusal within a maximum period of 4 months.
• 2025-2026 - National implementation in France
  The State is adapting its domestic law (in particular the Postal and Electronic Communications Code) and must set up a single digital information point (PIU) to centralize requests.
• June 30, 2026 - Opening of the first PIUs in France
  This office will become the mandatory point of entry for operators wishing to install fiber or a radio station on existing infrastructure.

How the Gigabit Infrastructure Act changes things for local authorities

The arrival of the Gigabit Infrastructure Act (GIA) of 2024 profoundly changes the role of local authorities, which now find themselves at the heart of telecom deployments.

A new type of request

Cities may now be asked to install:

• small cells,
• macro cells,
• radio boxes,
• optical fiber,

on their streetlights, buildings, roofs, or street furniture. The power and volume limits of the 2020 regulation have been removed. Operators must “only” comply with the laws applicable to the installation of antennas in public spaces.

Strict obligations and very short deadlines

Local authorities must now:

• provide their GIS data (network map, mechanical and electrical status, geolocation),
• respond to requests for information within 10 days,
• analyze access requests within one month,
• justify any refusal within four months with a robust technical file.

Without formal and technically substantiated opposition, the installation is deemed to have been accepted.

The system is almost identical to the American “shot clock” mechanism, which imposes a timetable for the local authority concerned. The European regulation, which is based on more comprehensive experience in this area, provides for exit mechanisms if the local authority identifies “sensitive” cases concerning the use of the requested location.

The need for a reliable technical inventory

Operators can now request:

• the mechanical characteristics of the masts,
• the electrical condition,
• the load capacities,
• the presence of available fiber or sheaths.

However, it should be noted that few local authorities currently have all this information in a structured form.

The emergence of a new role: co-management

Installing a radio station on a mast involves the coexistence of two previously independent worlds:

• public lighting,
• telecoms.

The rules of co-management, maintenance, mast access, and responsibility become crucial.

Understanding the role of each stakeholder

The GIA provides a clear framework, but its practical implementation requires an understanding of the distribution of roles, costs, and responsibilities. Several stakeholders must work together. As a transformation partner and expert in the world of public lighting and telecommunications, Kawantech is able to act as a liaison to support and secure each stage of the process.

• Telecom operators

Telecom operators own and operate the radio station. 

- Defining coverage gap requirements and size category.
- Choosing the radio station/antenna configuration in line with the characteristics of the available mast/site.
- Project manager for the deployment and direct operation of micro/macro small cells on enhanced masts.
- Management of traditional regulatory obligations relating to frequency allocation, authorizations, and radio station operating information.
- Responsible for the installation and maintenance of their equipment (antenna, remote radio unit, fiber cabling, etc.).

In addition, operators are responsible for requesting access to infrastructure and are liable for radio compliance (The French National Frequency Agency) and damage caused by their equipment.

• Towercos 

The towerco acquires a minimum 10-12 year right of use from the municipality/project owner and leases the site to one or more operators (or mobile network operators). It is responsible for financing the conversion of the public lighting mast into an enhanced mast.

- Selection of sites to be converted into enriched masts with telecom operators/MNOs.
- Placing an order with the project owner for the conversion of a mast by the project manager (financing the upgrade of a generic mast to an enriched mast that can be leased for micro or macro cells).
- Definition of physical rental prices to MNOs (height/propagation/population density).
- Commercialization of dematerialized small/macro cell sites to operators/MNOs.
- Sale and rental of physical small/macro cell sites to operators/MNOs.
- Payment to the transformation provider (Kawantech) for the supervision of contracted masts.
- Payment to the project owner of annual fees for the occupation of contracted masts.

Towercos manage contracts and regulatory aspects.

• Local authorities/municipalities

They are and remain the owners of public lighting equipment (electrical network, lighting fixtures, masts). As such, they retain their lighting obligations under the “Highway Code” (see R111-1 point no. 3).  They decide on installation authorizations and must be able to respond within the required time limits to requests from telecom operators, such as: 

- the mechanical characteristics of the masts,
- the electrical conditione,
- load capacities,
- the presence of available fiber or ducts.

Few local authorities currently have all this information in a structured form.

Local authorities set and receive the public domain occupancy fee from the towerco for making the rented space available.
They are responsible for the legality of the occupation of public land and for heritage and urban integrity.

• Departmental Energy unions

They are responsible for electrical safety and the structure of the mast, verify technical feasibility, and maintain the public lighting system. They are the project managers for physical infrastructure and public lighting.

- Oversees maintenance, equipment renewal with sizing, standards, performance maintenance, and support to the municipality/local authority (specifications and contract monitoring, in particular suppliers and installers).
- Public lighting expertise, compliance with NF C 18-510 + 510/A1 and 510/A2.
- Financing assistance through a public lighting contribution from the municipality and electricity distribution taxes.

More and more departmental energy unions are supporting the installation and maintenance of telecom ducts, and even the fibers themselves.

• Installers and suppliers

Their main role is the supply, civil engineering, and field maintenance of infrastructure (all field work under contracts with departmental energy unions).

- Mast installation, cabling, and civil engineering (high and low voltage).
- Ensures mechanical resistance during inspections and cleaning.
- Mapping with GIS, DT, DICT and CMMS monitoring of interventions.
- Carries out equipment exchanges at the request of the project manager.
- Carries out repairs in the event of lighting faults or accidents.

They may also install telecom networks (such as optical fiber) and CCTV cameras.

• Kawantech, a key player in transformation

Kawantech provides the telecom expertise that local authorities lack. It supplies “two-door” masts suitable for public lighting/Telecom cohabitation and implements economic models whereby the operator finances the replacement of the mast.

Kawantech is involved at every stage, assisting with the technical analysis of requests, co-management, fiber and radio compliance, and the preparation of opposition files in the event of refusal.

Finally, Kawantech acts as a link between all stakeholders (local authorities, operators, towercos, public lighting managers) to ensure the success of the transformation.

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