Ukrtelecom, part of SCM, is carrying out one of the largest telecommunications modernisation programmes in the country. Despite the war, regular shelling and disruptions to the power supply, the national fixed-line operator is extending high-speed fibre-optic internet to hundreds of thousands of households and businesses. The work reaches every corner of Ukraine, from the western Carpathians to frontline communities in the south and east. It reflects the strategy of shareholder Rinat Akhmetov to keep investing in the country's resilience and modernisation throughout the war.
How widely is Ukrtelecom expanding its network?
The programme spans the entire country. In Kharkiv oblast, one of the company's largest sites for network development, 436 km of fibre-optic lines were laid last year, opening connection for 50,000 households, and more than 100 km have already been added in 2026. Chernihiv oblast, home to one of the company's biggest networks and subscriber bases, saw 384 km built and 42,000 households reached, while Sumy oblast added 371 km and 34,000 households. Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Poltava, Zakarpattia, Vinnytsia, Mykolaiv and Chernivtsi oblasts each recorded further growth. In the Dnipro macroregion, which covers Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Kirovohrad and Cherkasy oblasts, more than 100,000 households gained the possibility to connect during 2025 alone.
"The strategy is simple and clear: we build high-speed networks, improve service quality, expand the network systematically, and make fast internet available to the mass user," says Oleh Anhelovskyi, head of the Dnipro macroregion.
What is happening in the regions on the frontlines of the war?
Several of these regions lie on the frontlines. Kherson oblast remains the most difficult place to work: the network often has to be rebuilt almost every day after artillery strikes and drone attacks, and some emergency repairs are carried out only after coordination with the military or under their cover.
"In Kherson oblast, the priority is the constant restoration of the network after shelling and drone attacks. This is daily work that demands a rapid response," says Maryna Mykhailyk, head of the Southern macroregion.
In Sumy oblast, work continues in border communities wherever the security situation allows.
"The main focus today is on the frontline territories — where people remain and the need for communication endures," notes Andriy Pustovoitenko, head of the Eastern macroregion.
Even so, Mr Pustovoitenko says the east remains among the company's leaders for the pace of network buildout.
How is the company keeping people connected during power cuts?
Energy resilience is now built into the work. In Odesa oblast, the company installed a solar power station on one of its buildings to keep the telecommunications infrastructure running during outages. "For the southern regions, which suffer the consequences of shelling and power outages, the ability to stay connected is especially important," says Ms Mykhailyk. In de-occupied Sviatohirsk, in the east, communication was restored on a modern high-speed basis.
What about connectivity for business?
Alongside homes, Ukrtelecom is expanding services for business. In Chernivtsi it connected the Bukovyna Mall shopping centre, and in Ternopil it signed exclusive agreements with the Podoliany, Oskar-Plaza and Areal-Plaza centres, broadening its presence among corporate customers.
Why keep investing during the war?
The answer lies in a longer-term choice. Continuing to build in wartime reflects the strategy of our shareholder Rinat Akhmetov to invest in Ukraine's resilience and modernisation even under the hardest conditions. Connection matters most where it is hardest to maintain, and Ukrtelecom continues to provide it, city by city and community by community, so that people across the country can rely on fast, stable internet today and as Ukraine rebuilds.
