Infrastructure investment firm Meridiam broke ground on a fiber project that will provide broadband access in the underserved Black Belt region of Alabama, US. The company will develop, build, finance, and manage a high-speed fiber-optic network that, upon completion, will enable fiber broadband access to 53,000 households and businesses across more than 300 miles, Meridiam said last Saturday.
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Investment Across Region
The company highlighted that the fiber network is being developed and deployed at no cost to local governments or their taxpayers. Reportedly, Selma-based Yellowhammer Networks, a fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) network developer owned and financed by Meridiam, has committed to funding 100 percent of the project, totalling USD 230 million in investment across the region.
Open Access Partnership
Additionally, Yellowhammer will provide strategic, technical, and operational support to the project. As an open-access network, Omnipoint will be the first ISP (Internet Service Provider) partner, bringing new and affordable fiber broadband service across Selma, Demopolis, and the Alabama Black Belt. The network will extend to Bibb, Dallas, Greene, Hale, Marengo, Perry, Sumter, and Wilcox counties.
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Expanding Digital Infrastructure
Meridiam said this project is part of a series of investments, totalling more than USD 2.7 billion, into digital infrastructure that will connect over 1.3 million homes, many in rural and underserved areas. This includes projects already underway in Bloomington and Central Indiana; Memphis, Tennessee; Alberta, Canada; and across Europe in Austria, Germany, and Romania.
