SSE Enterprise Telecoms is to extend its network footprint by unbundling an additional 40 BT exchanges in 'prime' business areas around the UK with high performance Ethernet services.
SSE Enterprise Telecoms has also been confirmed as one of a small number of service providers in BT Openreach's recently announced Dark Fibre Access trial.
Subject to the satisfactory outcome of this trial, SSE Enterprise Telecoms will use the newly regulated dark fibre services to provide connectivity to the 40 new exchanges.
This will be the third phase of the network expansion programme SSE Enterprise Telecoms dubbed Project Edge and will bring the total number of exchanges served by its national fibre optic network to 140.
The total number of postcodes in prime business areas that are served by the full Edge service will now increase to more than 300,000.
The Project Edge footprint is further extended by SSE Enterprise Telecoms' Edge Plus service, which provides its customers with access to the Ethernet services of six other suppliers across the breadth of the UK.
The 40 new exchanges, as well as all of the existing Edge 1, Edge 2 and Edge Plus sites, will be available to quote and order via SSE Enterprise Telecoms' online price comparison engine, LIVEQUOTE.
The 40 exchanges will be unbundled during the course of the next nine months and will be named in batches as they come on-net.
Colin Sempill, Managing Director of SSE Enterprise Telecoms, said: "We understand that to function in today's economy businesses need reliable, high capacity connectivity in all corners of the UK. It is through detailed analysis of LIVEQUOTE data as well as ongoing dialogue with direct customers and service providers,that we have selected these additional exchanges to which we will expand our network."