Cox Communications is taking full ownership of Unite Private Networks, of which it is the majority owner, and plans to create a standalone company that combines fiber provider UPN and infrastructure and business services company Segra.
The transaction is expected to close by June 30.
“We will bring UPN and Segra together to create a new, stand-alone company that continues to offer our customers a broad portfolio of commercial business services,” said Cox Communications President Mark Greatrex.
Segra has about 900 employees in 90 facilities and has a fiber footprint across the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern U.S., offering dark and lit fiber transport services, optical Ethernet, Internet access and SD-WAN to government agencies, carriers, data centers and enterprise business customers, as well as cloud and security solutions. UPN, which is headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri and focuses on serving Midwest markets, has network operations in 21 states with 12,000 fiber route miles and 9,500 end customers sites. UPN also notes that it is one of the largest providers of fiber WAN services to K-12 school districts, of which it serves more than 250.
Segra’s CEO, Kevin Hart, will take on the role of CEO at the new company, while UPN CEO Jason Adkins will become president of the combined company and report to Hart.
Cox became the majority owner of UPN in 2016, purchasing the majority position from private equity company Ridgemont Equity Partners. Cox noted in a release that it has spent the last few years investing in infrastructure and business services companies like Segra and managed cloud services provider Logicworks.
“Acquiring the remaining interest in UPN supports that ongoing focus,” the company said.
