Bar chart of rural coverage in Portugal in 2025: 5G 95.3%, fixed broadband 88.9%, very-high-capacity networks 81.6% and fibre 73.1%

Tech 23 August 2026

Which Portuguese villages get fibre next? 1,967 of them, across 288 municipalities

Rural Portugal already beats the EU average on 5G and very-high-capacity networks. The gap is the half a million homes with no fibre at all, and a €172.3 million contract now aims at them.

The same table supports an optimistic reading and an impatient one, and both are fair.

The optimistic one first. In rural Portugal, 5G now reaches 95.3% of homes and very-high-capacity networks reach 81.6% — a figure the regulator puts 8.9% above the EU average. Fibre to the home covers 73.1% of rural territory, also ahead of the European average. The numbers come from the Connectivity Coverage in Europe 2025 study, and ANACOM sets them out on its facts and figures page.

The impatient reading: rural fixed broadband stops at 88.9%, below the EU average. And 1,967 localities, spread across 288 municipalities, have no high-capacity network at all. Portugal calls them white zones.

Who is paying, and when it arrives

The contracts were signed between the five regional development commissions and DSTelecom, which won the international tender launched in 2023. Total investment is €172.3 million, of which roughly €30 million is public money, drawn from the ERDF via Portugal 2030 and from the proceeds of the 5G spectrum auction. The government’s statement on the signing lists the five lots: North, Centre, Alentejo, Algarve and Lisbon.

The rollout covers residential and non-residential buildings alike, including industry, shops and farms, and should bring fibre to around half a million homes that currently have none.

Why it took four years

ANACOM mapped the white zones back in 2022. Then came negotiations with Brussels, three public consultations, the resignation of the tender jury and a legal challenge that is still unresolved. The tender itself only launched in 2023, and the budget shrank along the way, from an initial €425 million to the €172.3 million actually contracted.

DSTelecom, which is itself now the subject of a sale process with international funds circling, will build, run and maintain the networks in all five lots. The official target has not moved: gigabit access everywhere in Portugal by 2030.

By Oliver Grant

Chart: Tugadaily · Data: European Commission, Connectivity Coverage in Europe 2025

Tech 23 August 2026

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Tech 22 August 2026

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Tugadaily bar chart of Brazil's AI plan investments announced on 20 August 2026, in millions of reais: Rio hub 1,200, PAX RN 1,000, RISC-V chips 125

Tech 21 August 2026

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Tech 20 August 2026

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Tech 20 August 2026

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Tech 19 August 2026

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Bar chart showing the years left before each band's usage rights expire: 16 years at 900 MHz, 15 at 800 MHz and 7 at 2600 MHz

Tech 18 August 2026

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Tech 17 August 2026

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Tugadaily chart: Tekever's valuation in millions of euros, 2025 round against the level targeted in 2026

Tech 16 August 2026

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Tech 15 August 2026

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Official Google launch image of the Pixel 11 Pro in Canyon pink, showing the rear camera bar

Tech 14 August 2026

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Tech 12 August 2026

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Tech 11 August 2026

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Tech 11 August 2026

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