On October 6, AT&T announced it will form a new fiber joint venture with Global Infrastructure Partners (part of BlackRock) and CPP Investments. The JV combines Gigapower, AT&T’s existing open-access venture with GIP, and Forged Fiber 37, the subsidiary holding the fiber business AT&T bought from Lumen in February. Together they become one wholesale, open-access fiber company operating in 16 states. The same day, AT&T disclosed a supply agreement with Corning worth more than $3 billion. For fiber crews this is mostly a 2027 story, but the map and the paperwork are worth understanding now.
The Deal, in Crew-Relevant Numbers
| What | Detail |
|---|---|
| Partners | AT&T owns 50%; GIP and CPP Investments own the other 50% together |
| What combines | Gigapower (AT&T + GIP open-access venture) and Forged Fiber 37 (the former Lumen consumer fiber business) |
| Size at closing | Nearly 5 million fiber locations and more than 1 million subscribers, per Light Reading |
| Model | Wholesale, open-access network: the JV builds and owns the fiber, and AT&T sells service over it |
| Role | AT&T’s main vehicle for building fiber outside its traditional service area |
| AT&T’s target | More than 60 million fiber locations by the end of 2030 |
| Supply | Corning agreement worth more than $3 billion; Corning is expanding North Carolina manufacturing to meet it |
| Timing | Expected to close in the first half of 2027, subject to regulatory approvals |
The supply deal is the detail crews should notice. Locking in multi-year fiber supply at that scale is a commitment to keep building through 2030, and the building is done by contractors.
The 16-State Map
The two businesses bring different footprints. Four states (Arizona, Florida, Minnesota and Nevada) appear on both lists.
Forged Fiber 37 (former Lumen fiber): Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington
Gigapower: Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, South Carolina
These are the states where the businesses operate today, usually in parts of each state rather than statewide. New construction will follow AT&T’s out-of-region strategy, so expect it to grow from these footprints rather than stay inside them. Crews in Arizona should also read our Phoenix right-of-way insurance guide, since Phoenix has the strictest municipal requirements in the region.
What Changes on Paper (and What Doesn’t Yet)
Until the deal closes, nothing changes legally. Gigapower and Forged Fiber 37 keep operating as they are, and your certificates should keep naming whatever entity is on your work order or master agreement today. Don’t reissue certificates to a company that doesn’t exist yet.
After closing, expect what usually happens when programs combine. We saw it with the Charter–Cox merger and the T-Mobile fiber JVs: a new contracting entity, vendor re-onboarding, and compliance checks that get consolidated and often more automated. The JV hasn’t published contractor insurance requirements, and requirements usually come from the prime or program you contract with. Treat any “new requirements” you hear before closing as rumor until they’re in your paperwork.
- Keep certificates matched to the entity on the work order in hand, not to the headline
- Flag every policy renewal between now and mid-2027, so a renewal doesn’t land in the middle of re-onboarding
- Open-access networks carry several providers’ customers, so expect additional insured and waiver language that covers the network owner as well as the ISP
- If you work both sides of the map today (former Lumen markets and Gigapower markets), keep limits at the higher of the two programs’ requirements so one package clears both
Where the Work Is
New-market fiber-to-the-home builds. Out-of-region builds are greenfield: every home is a new passing, with aerial strand, underground conduit, boring, splicing and drops in the same market. That favors operations that can staff several of those scopes, and it’s exactly the work our Gigapower page covers.
AI long-haul routes. Zayo told RCR Wireless that long-haul dark fiber demand doubled between 2024 and 2025, and demand in some top AI metro markets is up to 20 times higher than before. Customer orders have grown from dozens of fibers to hundreds or thousands. Zayo called permitting the biggest execution challenge and said these routes need experienced teams and contractors. For established boring and underground operations, that means long routes with high fiber counts, and buyers who check umbrella limits closely. See our Zayo requirements page and directional boring program.
Also This Week: Regional Builds
Vero Fiber, El Centro, California. Vero began fiber-to-the-home construction in southwest El Centro on September 28. The city is building in zones of about 300 homes, and the work includes directional boring, conduit, pull boxes and handholes, fiber placement and restoration. The first zone is expected to run through late October or early November. The project’s environmental filing with the California Public Utilities Commission describes a 92-mile system: about 71 miles aerial on existing poles and about 21 miles of new underground conduit. Separately, Vero completed its merger with MontanaSky (Kalispell and Libby in Montana’s Flathead Valley) on October 1. Boring in residential zones is where pollution coverage for frac-outs matters. California crews can check our California cost guide.
Spectrum, Somerset County, Maryland. Spectrum finished a multi-year rural build: more than 133 miles of construction reaching more than 1,300 homes and small businesses. The project cost more than $12.5 million, of which $10.3 million came from the state and county. Publicly funded builds like this often add government entities to the additional insured requirements, so read the grant-funded contract terms as well as the ISP’s. See our Maryland page and Spectrum subcontractor page.
What to Do Before 2027
- List which AT&T, Gigapower, or former Lumen entities your current certificates name, and note every renewal date through mid-2027
- Planning to bid out-of-region builds? Check municipal right-of-way requirements in each new state before you mobilize
- Moving into long-haul or AI-route work? Confirm your umbrella limits, equipment schedule values, and pollution coverage before the bid, not after
- Make sure your broker can reissue entity-correct certificates fast. Re-onboarding waves reward the crews whose paperwork clears first
Already insured and growing into this work? A free renewal review checks your current program against what these builds will ask for. Starting fresh? Start a quote, or call (350) 218-1055.
Sources: AT&T announcement; Light Reading; Fox Business; RCR Wireless; City of El Centro; CPUC CEQA filing; Broadband Communities; Fierce Network.