Frontier gets Texas PUC approval for Verizon wireline asset purchase
Frontier gets Texas PUC approval for Verizon wireline asset purchase
Frontier has cleared another hurdle in its path to complete its acquisition of Verizon’s (NYSE: VZ) wireline assets in California, Florida and Texas as the Texas Public Utility Commission (PUC) approved the transfer of Verizon’s Southwest division’s CLEC certificate to Frontier.
Following the FCC’s recent approval of the deal, the PUC approval is the only state regulatory approval that Frontier needed in Texas.
Kathleen Abernathy, executive vice president of external affairs for Frontier, said in a release that it anticipates “that the transaction will close at the end of the first quarter of 2016.”
Abernathy added that Frontier continues to “participate in the regulatory review process in California.”
California remains a new potential source of controversy for Frontier and Verizon. The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) recently voted 4-to-1 to examine the physical condition of AT&T and Verizon’s copper networks in the state citing instances of substandard service quality.
In related news, Frontier is planning to raise $6.6 billion in bonds to back its purchase the Verizon wireline assets.
An unidentified source told Bloomberg that Frontier could sell the notes in up to three pieces. The person added that Frontier plans to complete the sale by Sept. 15 or 16.