Iliad Group has secured a €300 million ($330m) loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB).

The loan will be used to support the telco's 5G network expansion in France.

It's the seventh loan that has been issued to Iliad by the EIB since 2009, totaling more than €1.7 billion ($1.87bn).

The company received a €300m ($330m) loan earlier this year to finance the Group’s fiber network rollout in France.

“This financing transaction – the seventh loan granted to Iliad SA by the EIB since 2009 – reaffirms the strength of the long-standing relations that unite our two groups, not only in France, but also in Poland via our subsidiary Play since the beginning of 2022," said Thomas Reynaud, CEO of the Iliad Group.

"We’re delighted to be furthering our partnership with the EIB, which will enable us to pursue our ambitious objectives of rolling out and densifying our mobile networks in France so we can provide the best connectivity to our subscribers."

Iliad is owned by French tycoon Xavier Niel.

The company has more than 38 million subscribers across France, Italy, and Poland through its various subsidiaries and is Europe's sixth-largest mobile operator.

At present its 5G coverage rate reaches 94.4 percent of the French population.

"This latest investment will enable this European champion to accelerate its 5G network rollouts and strengthen network infrastructure that has become essential for companies’ business development and people’s daily lives," added EIB Vice-President Ambroise Fayolle.

EIB noted that the loan has a maturity of up to eight years for a bullet loan or 12 years if repaid in installments.

Earlier this week, Iliad submitted a proposal to Vodafone to merge the two telcos in Italy.

Iliad values Vodafone Italia at €10.45 billion ($11.42bn) in its offer.