Alex West (Swoop)
Fixed wireless and wholesale network infrastructure provider Swoop has acquired the dark fibre network assets and customers of Adelaide-based network company iFibre for $1.5 million in cash.
The deal sees Swoop pick up 34 kilometres of fibre in the Adelaide CBD and other metro areas for $1.2 million when the deal initially completes this month.
The remaining $300,000 is to be withheld for six months for any potential claims and adjustments.
“Acquiring iFibre’s dark fibre network is a great opportunity to commence our investment in this space,” said Swoop CEO Alex West. “The 34km network covers the major interconnection points, data centres as well as the CBD of Adelaide.
“Predominantly built in its own ducts and with low utilisation, the acquisition represents significant value for Swoop, compared to us beginning an organic build.
“Having previously been responsible for fibre operations at Vocus, we know both the technical and business aspects of dark fibre incredibly well."
"The team and I are excited to be entering this market again with a network that is immediately ready for sale by our teams,” he added.
When completed, this will mark the seventh acquisition for Swoop since its listing on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) in May 2021.
Those acquisitions include Speedweb and Community Communications (ComComs) in June, Beam Internet in July, and Countrytell and VoiceHub Group in October.
Swoop’s financial results for 2021, its first since listing, showed the company’s pre-tax earnings losses increased significantly by 467.6 per cent, giving a final number of $8.8 million in the red.
However, West at the time was optimistic about Swoop's potential for future success, claiming that he saw opportunities for further acquisitions.
