LONDON, June 2 (Reuters) - Vodafone ( VOD ) and CK Hutchison

have completed the merger of their UK operations, creating a new

business called "VodafoneThree", which will invest 1.3 billion

pounds ($1.76 billion) in its network in the first year, the

companies said on Monday.

The combination will overtake BT's EE and O2, jointly owned

by Telefonica and Liberty Global ( LBTYA ), to become market leader.

The $19 billion tie-up was approved by regulators in

December after they were persuaded that the investment pledged

by the two companies outweighed concerns about a reduction to

three from four networks.

Vodafone ( VOD ) and Three said they would invest 11 billion pounds

over the next 10 years in building one of Europe's most advanced

5G networks.

Margherita Della Valle, Vodafone Group ( VOD ) chief executive, said

the merger would create a new force in UK mobile, transform the

country's digital infrastructure and propel the UK to the

forefront of European connectivity.

"We are now eager to kick-off our network build and rapidly

bring customers greater coverage and superior network quality,"

she said on Monday.

The new company's logo is Vodafone's ( VOD ) "speechmark" and

Hutchison's "3" side by side, referencing the VodafoneThree

name.

The group, which is 51% owned by Vodafone ( VOD ), did not say which

Vodafone ( VOD ) and Three brands, which also include the Voxi and

Smarty value offers, it will retain.

($1 = 0.7384 pounds)