by Pivot
Tag: Electric Cooperatives
USDA Awards $43.7 Million in Smart Grid Funding, Could Help Drive More Rural Broadband
Part of USDA smart grid funding will go toward communications infrastructure, potoentially opening up the possibility of partnerships with rural broadband providers, although some utilities may opt to deploy fiber themselves.
NRECA Estimates Economic Impact of Lack of Broadband: $68.2 Billion Annually in Member Areas
The association representing rural electric cooperatives estimated the economic impact of lack of broadband based on an estimated $1,950 annual benefits that homes without broadband miss out on.
How the Rural Electric Cooperative Consortium Won $186 Million in CAF II Funding for Gigabit Broadband
The Rural Electric Cooperative Consortium came together to bid in the CAF II broadband auction so members could share a single consultant. We talked to that consultant about how the consortium won one of the largest awards in the auction to build gigabit . . .
Electric Cooperative Gigabit Gains Traction
Four electric cooperative gigabit projects join a fifth announced yesterday. The four latest projects include two in Tennessee, where legislators voted to allow electric co-ops to offer . . .
Tennessee Companies Form Latest Telecom-Utility Broadband Partnership
A telecom-utility broadband partnership between United Communications and Middle Tennessee Electric Membership Corporation will bring service to parts of seven counties. A United spokesperson told us that . . .
Qualified $2B CAF II Auction Bidders Range From Tier 1 Verizon, to Rural Telcos, Electrics, WISPs, and Everything In Between
Qualified CAF II auction bidders include satellite providers Viasat and Hughes, along with wireless companies such as U.S. Cellular and smaller cable companies including Altice, as well as rural telcos and electric companies.
NineStar Connect Water Company Acquisition Would Provide More Fiber Broadband Expansion Opportunities
NineStar Connect was created when power and telecom cooperatives merged in 2011. The company offers fiber-to-the-premises throughout its territory, but economic development wasn’t coming as fast as the company hoped, in part because 75% of the serving area cannot . . .
Freedom Fiber Looks to Human Side of Broadband, USDA Helps Fund Electric Co-op Broadband Project
A USDA grant will help cover the cost of a rural utility broadband deployment, known as Freedom Fiber, developed by Tombigbee Communications. Tombigbee CEO and President Steve Foshee is an articulate advocate for rural broadband. In our interview, . . .
Foundation Explores Telecom Utility Broadband Partnership Economics
A telecom utility broadband partnership can sometimes find a business case for deployment where it would not have been feasible for either entity alone. What if an outside funding source were available? Post Road Foundation aims to answer that question.
NGN Connect Buys Back the Fixed Wireless Business It Sold to an Electric Cooperative
NGN Connect sold part of its fixed wireless business in 2015. But when purchaser Habersham Electric Membership Corporation decided to focus instead on fiber optics, NGN Connect was happy to get the business back. NGN Connect never exited the fixed wireless business but instead . . .