Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: STC launches MENA hub; Openreach looks east; Beyond.pl lands Hivelocity gig.The UK government is in discussions with Macquarie Group, an Australian bank, in a bid to secure a £10 billion (US$13.5 billion) investment in British infrastructure, covering both communications- and energy-related assets, according to a Sky News report. An announcement on the matter had been expected later this month during a visit to Australia by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, says the report, but that jaunt has been postponed as a result of Johnson's various self-inflicted crises closer to home. Macquarie already has a finger in the UK telecom pie through its ownership of Kcom, the operator based in the northern English city of Hull.Saudi Telecom Company (STC) has launched a $1 billion initiative to establish a digital for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The hub, says STC, will link three continents and will benefit from the "strategic location" of Saudi Arabia, promoting investment in international communications services.Openreach, the semi-autonomous network access arm of UK incumbent operator BT, is investing £32 million ($43.2 million) into extending its full-fiber network to 108,000 more homes and businesses across the east of England. The counties of Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk will all feel the benefit.Polish data center operator Beyond.pl has been chosen by US-based Hivelocity to provide it with colocation and managed services in Poland. The partnership is related to a new blockchain project that Hivelocity is implementing in 30 locations, including Poland.Israel's GenCell Energy has launched an off-grid power offering for mobile operators that replaces fossil fuels with ammonia. The GenCell Fox, which creates hydrogen from ammonia, can be placed at a basestation where grid power services are poor or non-existent and can keep the tower running without refueling for up to six months, says GenCell. The technology is being demonstrated at Mobile World Congress later this month.Vodafone UK has tapped Samsung to be its "exclusive smartphone partner," whatever that means, for its Business.connected training program aimed at small and midsized businesses. The program has been set up in partnership with Enterprise Nation, a support community for small businesses.Virgin Media is hoping to lure more of its customers onto higher tiers by giving all of its customers free access to its paid-for kids' channels during the UK half-term holiday. Cartoon Network, Cartoonito and Nickelodeon are among the riches on offer.— Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading