Verizon to buy optical fibre from Corning for over $1.05 bn
19 Apr 2017
US telecommunications conglomerate Verizon Communications Inc yesterday struck a deal to buy optical fibre from Corning Inc for at least $1.05 billion over the next three years.
Verizon, the largest US wireless carrier, said that the deal would help improve its network infrastructure and meet its rollout schedule for a fibre-optic network in Boston.
Under the terms of the agreement, Verizon will buy up to 12.4 million miles of optical fibre from Corning each year from 2018 through 2020, with a minimum purchase commitment of $1.05 billion.
Verizon aims to build a new architecture of "next-gen" fibre network and enhance its 4G LTE coverage as well as speed the deployment of 5G and deliver high-speed broadband to homes and businesses.
In an initial deployment, Verizon launched One Fiber in Boston in 2016 and plans to invest $300 million over six years to deploy it throughout the city.
Viju Menon, Verizon's chief supply chain officer, said, ''Our plans identified a shortfall in fibre supply, and Verizon has been working with business teams to forecast demand and fill supply gaps with existing suppliers.
Securing the required volume of optical fibre and hardware solutions with Corning will ensure we meet our planned rollout schedules.''
