Allianz is investing more than 700 million euros in the joint fiber optic project with Telefónica. A spokeswoman for the insurance company confirmed this to the dpa. The partners officially presented their project called “Our Green Glass Fiber” at the end of October. For Allianz and other pension and life insurers as well as investment funds, infrastructure projects are attractive, especially in view of the current low interest rates, because they promise long-term returns.

Alliance with Telefónica The Spanish Telefónica group wants to set up a fiber optic network in underserved regions of Germany with its network subsidiary Telefónica Infra. Telefónica COO Ángel Vilá first announced the plans at the end of July when the quarterly figures were announced. The alliance is getting 50 percent in the “green fiber optics”, the other half is shared by Telefónica Infra (40 percent) and Telefónica Deutschland ( percent). The German subsidiary also brings transport services into the joint project via its network.

“As an infrastructure investor, we are very pleased to have a joint venture with such an experienced partner to enter the fiber-to-the-home segment like Telefónica, “said Allianz board member Günther Thallinger. Last year, Allianz invested around 300 million euros in fiber optic expansion in Lower Austria. The insurance giant had previously participated in the French fiber optic project SFR FTTH. In addition, Allianz wants to put another 160 million euros into a Portuguese gas network operator.

Alternative investments The investments in infrastructure are intended to open up alternative capital investments that promise higher returns in view of the permanently low interest rates. According to its own information, Allianz Leben currently manages around 308 billion euros. About 28 percent of it has invested in alternative investments such as infrastructure, real estate or renewable energy projects. In the medium term, the share should increase to a third in order to be able to achieve higher returns.

(vbr)