A year of connection, growth, and community with Fibrus
Colin Hutchinson, Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer at Fibrus Group, reflects on another successful year for the company, infrastructure projects, and supporting local communities.
In 2025, Fibrus has strengthened Northern Ireland’s position as one of the UK’s most connected regions, while fuelling economic growth, completing key infrastructure projects, and supporting local communities.
Our mission since Fibrus was founded has been the same: to bring full fibre broadband to homes and businesses in rural, hard-to-reach places, whilst placing the local communities we serve at the heart of what we do.
As we look back on the past year, I am incredibly proud to say that Fibrus has continued to deliver on this promise, transforming connectivity across Northern Ireland and making a real difference to rural communities.
Project Stratum
In the summer of 2025, we proudly celebrated the completion of Project Stratum, awarded to Fibrus in November 2020. The successful delivery of this £200 million landmark initiative, a once-in-a-generation infrastructure project and the largest telecoms project ever undertaken in Northern Ireland, marks a defining achievement for the company and the region.
Completed on time and within budget, Project Stratum has delivered lightning-fast full fibre broadband to over 81,000 premises across Northern Ireland.
Northern Ireland now boasts an impressive 95 per cent connectivity rate, which is 9 per cent higher than the UK average. This is a really crucial statistic and it is a game changer for homes and businesses that finally have the digital infrastructure needed to thrive. It is also a major step toward closing the digital divide, and we are proud to have played a key role in making it happen.
Our lasting impact
With Project Stratum complete and major milestones achieved, it was time to reflect on our progress and our impact.
In May 2025, we commissioned Grant Thornton to produce an economic impact report to give us the real picture of the difference Fibrus is making in Northern Ireland.
The report revealed that since 2020, Fibrus has injected £431 million into the Northern Ireland economy. That figure carries real meaning; it represents real jobs, real investment, and real change for our communities. We have created hundreds of roles, strengthened our supply chain, and through our rapid network expansion, connected over 410,000 homes and businesses as of May 2025. Project Stratum alone delivers £50.6 million in potential annual productivity gains, and we are immensely proud of that impact.
Empowering communities
At Fibrus, success is bigger than just connectivity; it is about community. That is why social impact remains a key focus, with over £411,000 donated to local charities and grassroots organisations across Northern Ireland by May 2025.
Through the Fibrus Community Fund, we have invested over £235,000 in Northern Ireland, funding projects to address digital poverty in rural areas, benefitting over 130 community organisations to date.
Through our Play it Forward Fund and sponsorship of Antrim GAA and Coleraine FC, we are helping communities across Northern Ireland come together through sport. Sport unites, inspires, and creates opportunities, and we are proud to be part of that journey.
To date, the Play it Forward fund has invested £60,000, supporting 63 grassroots clubs, with an additional £30,000 set to be allocated this quarter.
Clubs who received funding over the last year, include Causeway Giants Wheelchair Basketball Club from Coleraine, Newry Rugby Club, Elite Taekwon-Do NI, based in Bangor and St Brigid’s Camogie club in Armagh. St Brigid’s used its funding received to run a 10-week programme encouraging more local children to get involved in the sport.
Kerry Toner, Chairperson at St Brigid’s camogie club in Armagh says: “The funding allowed us to reach out to a wider set of children and to provide an overall training top so that all of the children felt included and there was no pressure on the parents.
“We hope that all of the children remain within the club and continue to enjoy playing camogie with their friends for years to come.”
Financial strength that powers our next chapter
Now in our fifth year of operations, our year-end financial results showed rapid customer growth, with our annual revenue rocketing by 67 per cent year-on-year to £29.5 million and customer numbers increasing by 45 per cent to 113,000, across our Northern Ireland and Cumbrian footprint (end of March 2025).
We reached the major milestone of becoming EBITDA positive in March 2025, ahead of schedule. With year-on-year EBITDA growth of £13 million, our results show that our business model is strong, sustainable, and backed by our customers. This milestone is a clear signal of the strength and resilience of Fibrus as we continue to grow.
Strength in the road ahead
With Project Stratum complete, we are looking ahead with renewed focus and ambition.
Our mission remains as vital as ever; to champion rural communities and ensure they reach their full potential as engines of growth for Northern Ireland. From connecting our first customer over five years ago to where we are today, our vision has never wavered. We are now proudly serving almost 130,000 customers and have reached over 440,000 premises across Northern Ireland and Cumbria.
In 2025, we have celebrated major milestones, from extending our network to hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses to driving significant social and economic impact. As we reflect on our achievements, we know this is just the beginning.
We remain committed to building stronger connections, supporting local communities, and pushing the boundaries of what is possible, ensuring rural Northern Ireland is equipped to thrive now and for generations to come.
