Wales' own broadband company is opening new offices this month, one year since it rebranded and launched its £200m full-fibre rollout.
Ogi will be opening four offices over the next two weeks with premises in St Clears and Tongwynlais, a network laboratory in Newport and a new headquarters in Cardiff's Hodge House.
The firm said it is recruiting on average two people per week, having grown from 21 staff this time last year to more than 136 today, with around five more members of staff joining this month.
Chief executive Ben Allwright said: "Right from the start, our ambition has been to become a leading Welsh telecoms company, and the last 12 months have certainly laid the foundations for that goal.
"We’re continuously driven to bring next generation broadband to underserved areas across Wales. Ogi’s roll-out is bringing much needed connectivity to towns and villages from Pembrokeshire to Monmouthshire much faster than they’d otherwise be served, ensuring everybody has access to the same opportunities for a more prosperous and greener future."
He added: "Our team live and work in our rollout communities and are passionate about the possibilities that Gigabit-connectivity is bringing."
The company has grown rapidly since it launched its new brand, Ogi, in June last year, following an investment from European infrastructure funders Infracapital to deliver a £200m phase one business plan.
Its ambitious plan is for the rollout of its Gigabit-capable ultrafast broadband across Wales over the next two to three years, creating up to 165 highly-skilled jobs within the company and supporting hundreds more through the supply chain.
The firm has already rolled out its full-fibre broadband to Haverfordwest, Rhoose, Llantwit Major, St Athan and Abergavenny, and earlier this year, announced that Monmouth, Dinas Powys, and Milford Haven and Johnston were the latest areas to be connected to the Cardiff-based internet service provider's ultrafast broadband network.
A further eight towns and villages are planned for Ogi's broadband rollout before the end of the year.
The firm said each community benefits from a capital injection of around £6m, with the long-term economic impact from the company's total first phase investment of £200m estimated to be worth up to £1bn to the Welsh economy.
The firm said it is on track to deliver its first phase 150,000 plan and intends to accelerate its rollout before the traditional copper networks are switched off.
Full-fibre broadband coverage in Wales increased from 19% to 27% of premises between 2020 and 2021, the highest year-on-year increase to that point – with Ofcom’s 2021 Connected Nations report citing Ogi as a contributor to this gear-change.
Full-fibre coverage in Wales is now at 32%, roughly the same as the level across the rest of Britain.
