On Monday, global real assets investor DIF Capital Partners announced a major investment through its second core infrastructure fund (DIF CIF II), in which the private equity fund will invest alongside the Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) in a project to significantly expand fiber broadband access in rural Manitoba.
DIF will invest through its Canadian portfolio company Valley Fiber, a telecom infrastructure and internet services provider that develops, builds and operates fiber and fixed wireless infrastructure for residential and commercial use. Valley Fiber is based in Winkler, Manitoba, and operates in more than 20 municipalities across the province, building high-quality infrastructure for historically underserved rural communities.
Since DIF CIF II became Valley Fiber’s majority shareholder since April 2020, the company has expanded and enhanced its product offering and geographical footprint. CIB’s new involvement will enable DIF and Valley Fiber to build out a broadband infrastructure that supports economic growth for the benefit of Canadians, aiming to connect 48,500 householders in rural Manitoba with dedicated fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) service over the coming years.
“The collaboration with Valley Fiber and CIB has proven to be very successful and this investment represents our next step into the fast-growing telecom infrastructure sector,” DIF CIF II Head Willem Jansonius said in announcing the deal on Monday.
DIF CIF II, one of the family of DIF funds that targets equity investments in small to mid-sized economic infrastructure assets in telecom, energy and transportation, has also extended its capital commitment to Valley Fiber to fund future organic growth and add-on opportunities in the near term.
The deal with DIF in Manitoba is the latest announcement from the Canada Infrastructure Bank announcing a major boost to rural broadband access. On Friday, as part of a joint federal-provincial government investment of $362 million to bring high-speed internet to 90,124 households in rural Ontario, CIB said it would “assess opportunities” proposed through Canada’s $2.75 billion Universal Broadband Fund to provide additional project funding.
More than 890,000 rural and remote Canadian households are on track to be connected to high-speed internet by the end of 2023 as a result of federal investments. The Canadian government is aiming to provide 98 percent of Canadians with high-speed Internet access by 2026, and 100 percent by 2030.
