Orange Belgium signed network access agreements with rival Telenet in a move which could pave the path forward for the France-based operator to secure a deal for a majority stake in VOO.

The operator stated it struck an agreement to provide access to each other’s fixed networks for a period of 15 years, covering Telenet’s hybrid fibre coaxial network and its future FTTH offering.

Meanwhile, Orange Belgium will provide Telenet wholesale access to VOO and its own fibre offering in the regions of Wallonia and the capital of Brussels, along with offering wholesale services.

Orange said the agreements, subject to its deal for VOO being completed, would “foster innovation, benefit the customer and competition in the Belgian market”.

News of the agreements comes more than two months after talks began, with the duo signing a memorandum of understanding to negotiate a network access deal.

Reuters reported at the time any deal could alleviate competition concerns which was holding up Orange’s deal to acquire VOO, which requires European Commission approval.

Orange Belgium agreed the deal to acquire 75 per cent minus one share of VOO from its current owner Nethys in late 2021, for €1.8 billion.

Xavier Pichon, CEO of Orange Belgium, said the agreement with Telenet was “a major step forward in the deployment of our leading nationwide gigabit strategy”.