Consolidated Communications

Consolidated Communications reported results for the first quarter of 2023. The company:

• Achieved record consumer fiber broadband net adds of 12,337, an increase of 60% versus the first quarter of 2022. Consumer broadband net adds were positive by 2,404;
• Grew consumer fiber broadband revenue by 56% and increased the average-revenue-per-user (ARPU) by 5.7%;
• Completed 53,858 fiber upgrades to Gigabit+ speeds, now extending fiber-to-the-premises (FttP) capabilities to 40% of the addressable market.

Consolidated Communications will bring Fidium fiber internet to 22,000 rural Maine homes and businesses as part of the Connect Maine Partnership, supported by a $18.3 million grant from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). This project will bolster Consolidated’s ongoing work to build fiber-to-the-premises broadband networks to more than 70% of the Company’s service area by 2025.

Consolidated Communications was awarded $40 million in funding from American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to build fiber to nearly 25,000 unserved homes throughout New Hampshire. Consolidated will invest its own capital to bring fiber to more than 32,000 additional homes.

Consolidated Communications announced that Clio Subsidiary has entered into an agreement to sell its limited partnership interests in five wireless partnerships managed by Cellco Partnership, doing business as Verizon Wireless, to Cellco for an aggregate purchase price of $490 million. The net proceeds of the sales will be invested in the business and used to support Consolidated’s Fiber to the Premises build plan. The sales are expected to close by the end of 2022, subject to certain closing conditions and third-party purchase rights available to other partners in the partnerships.

Consolidated Communications is delivering symmetrical gigabit fiber internet to nearly 9,000 residents and businesses in Charleston, Mattoon, Shelbyville and Taylorville (IL) by the end of 2021. Thousands of residents can now benefit from the new fiber-to-the-premises internet network delivering reliable, high-speed connectivity with highly competitively priced plans. Plans start at just $35 per month, and symmetrical 1-gig service is available for $70 per month. All plans include equipment and installation, and a one-year price lock with no contract required.