After completing its Virginia network build and moving ahead with integrating Fibertech, Lightower is set on deepening its foothold in the southern United States by kicking off a 365-route mile fiber expansion project in North Carolina.
As part of this expansion, Lightower will add over 120 miles of fiber to its existing network in Raleigh, while entering the Charlotte market with over 90 miles of fiber serving the city.
Raleigh and Charlotte will have access to the broader Lightower Network, including over 33,000 route miles of fiber providing access to 22,000+ service locations across 17 states. The network build in both cities is scheduled for completion this month and services will be available immediately.
This latest network build will be integrated into the rest of the Lightower Network with low latency, direct connections to key connectivity hubs in Ashburn, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Lightower will provide two interconnection locations at 2100 Garner Station Boulevard in Raleigh, and 10105 David Taylor Drive and 125 N. Meyers Street in Charlotte.
While this latest build could kickoff Lightower’s plan to deepen its network in the south, the service provider could look to acquire other regional providers.
Over the past seven years, Lightower has expanded rapidly throughout the Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, and Northeast. During that period the service provider successfully closed and integrated nine acquisitions of regional assets to complement its strong organic growth. With that acquisitive track record, it’s likely that Lightower will consider other deals to complement its organic builds in North Carolina.
With DukeNet becoming part of Charter’s business and wholesale unit after the cable MSO acquired its parent company Time Warner Cable, a potential target could be Spirit’s PalmettoNet. PalmettoNet has already built out a 7,500-route mile fiber network that it uses to provide a host of wholesale fiber to the tower, long-haul transport and metro services to service providers.
For more:
- see the release
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