Geopolitical tensions dampen appetite for new fibre projects

Featuring in Capacity’s State of the Sector report: Fibre, Drozdowski highlighted growing concerns within the telecoms industry that global instability could slow investment in long-term fibre infrastructure.

According to Drozdowski, who has held the position of COO at the Polish telecom giant since 2016, despite global governments and investors around the world committing billions to fibre networks to improve connectivity, deeper structural challenges in how networks are built and maintained are often overlooked.

“Most customers think fibre is just internet access, ” he claims. “We need more discussion about how the internet works and how to build a resilient, redundant system to ensure quality beyond speed tests.”

Geopolitical developments have also highlighted structural vulnerabilities in existing network routes.

In Poland, for example, a significant share of internet traffic travelling toward Asia still passes through major hubs in Western Europe, leaving limited alternative pathways.

“Most traffic from Poland to Asia still routes via Frankfurt,” Drozdowski says, noting that direct links through Central and Eastern Europe remain limited.

Alongside this, in Europe, Drozdowski says permitting procedures and regulatory paperwork can slow cross-border projects for years.

He states: “The biggest problem is the paperwork for building permits. Cross-border projects add complexity. Paperwork is the largest bottleneck in European investment processes.”

“Fibre build-out is a long-term investment”, he adds. “Harmonising cross-border projects is complicated due to differing legal frameworks. Less regulation and simpler processes would help.”

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