AT&T Offloads Fiber Buildout Costs in New Joint Venture With BlackRock

AT&T is spinning up a new fiber joint venture alongside BlackRock's Global Infrastructure Partners and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board to expand its broadband footprint. The telecom operator will maintain a 50% ownership stake, while GIP and CPP Investments will collectively hold the remaining 50%. The agreement merges two existing properties: the Forged Fiber 37 unit—which holds assets recently acquired from Lumen Technologies—and Gigapower, AT&T’s current wholesale venture with GIP. AT&T plans to use the undisclosed cash proceeds from the deal to pay down its corporate debt, targeting a net-debt-to-adjusted EBITDA ratio of 2.5 times within three years.