Brussels, 24/03/2009 (Agence Europe) - The Spanish operator, Telefónica, and Vodafone from the United Kingdom, have signed an agreement on sharing their mobile network infrastructure in the United Kingdom, Spain, Ireland and Germany in an effort to develop their respective networks in remote areas. An extension to the Czech Republic is currently being negotiated. Collaboration between the two operators will mean using a single mast in their second and third generation mobiles (2G and 3G), which will help deliver significant cost benefits and “save hundreds of millions of euro”, as well as facilitate optimisation of existing infrastructure. The different partners explained that the agreement will also have a significantly positive environmental impact because no new sites will need building. The operators affirmed that the agreement did not mean service or customer sharing and stated that “we are actively exploring additional areas for cooperation”. The subsequent savings will allow them to “invest in areas they truly value”. (I.L./transl.rh)