Berkshire Partners, a Boston-based investment firm, announced plans to acquire both Lightower Fiber Networks and Sidera Networks and merge the companies into a single telecom operator. The two transactions are valued at over $2 billion. The companies named Rob Shanahan, Lightower’s current President and CEO, to be the CEO of the new company.
Lightower own and operates over 6,600 fiber route miles extending from New England, to eastern New York State, New Jersey, Long Island and New York City. The fiber footprint provides access to over 3,500 service locations. Investors in Lightower Fiber Networks include M/C Partners, Pamlico Capital and Ridgemont Equity Partners.
Sidera’s fiber footprint spans more than 13,500 route miles and includes metro networks in Boston, Chicago, London, Long Island, New York City, Philadelphia, Toronto, and Washington D.C. It has over 3,000 on-net locations. Investors in Sidera Networks ABRY Partners and Spectrum Equity Investors.
“Lightower and Sidera together will offer customers an industry-leading, fiber-based network with a deeply experienced team supporting it,” stated Rob Shanahan, CEO of Lightower. “Both companies have a shared vision of network excellence, customized solutions and superior customer support. Once merged, we will offer customers more services, more routes and more access options with the same high levels of performance, diversity, reliability and support that our customers have come to expect from us.”
“This combination is highly complementary,” commented Mike Sicoli, CEO of Sidera. “The broad reach and scale of our combined network, the cumulative expertise of our dedicated employees and our shared passion for customer service and satisfaction will set the new company apart and deliver tangible benefits to our customers.”
