TDS asks for bids for its NH broadband stimulus projects

TDS Telecom (NYSE: TDS) told five telecom construction companies to present their bids for two broadband stimulus projects in its New Hampshire territory. Interested participants have until June 15 to submit a bid to the telco.

Similar to other projects it has asked construction companies to compete for work in Idaho, Tennessee, and Washington state, the work in New Hampshire are also small deployments.

When these new projects are completed by two of TDS' New Hampshire-based operating subsidiaries, they will extend broadband services to about 950 customers in harder to reach communities.

The two service providers participating in this upcoming build out would be TDS' Kearsarge Telephone Company and TDS' Merrimack County Telephone Company, which serve areas southeast of Wilmot and areas around Hillsborough.

Overall, TDS received broadband stimulus funding for 44 projects from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act via the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture's (USDA) Rural Utilities Service (RUS). TDS estimates that when it completes these projects at the end of 2013, it will be able to extend broadband services to an additional 27,000 households throughout its operating regions. 

For more:
- see the release
- here's Kearsarge Telephone Company's bid (PDF; opens as file)
- and Merrimack's bid (PDF; opens as file)

Commentary: Detailed, accessible infrastructure maps can aid smarter broadband deployments

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