The State Corporation Commission has approved the sale of North River Telephone Cooperative to Shenandoah Telephone Co. As a result, NRTC will turn over its landlines to Shentel and dissolve the Cooperative.
As outlined in his comments to the NRTC member/owners at the annual meeting held April 6, NRTC General Manager Myron Rummel spoke of Shentel’s ability to upgrade NRTC’s existing network and to bring affordable broadband coverage to its members. Earle MacKenzie, executive vice president for Shentel, stated that, “the transition is an exciting opportunity for Shentel. The additional resources of the combined company will benefit the North River service area.”
Shentel will assume ownership and operation of the NRTC system on Nov. 1, 2009. “We are in the process of making upgrades to provide broadband coverage to 100 percent of the North River customers. Shentel has an exemplary record of providing excellent telecommunications services to its customers and we look forward to serving the North River service area,” commented David Ferguson, vice president of customer services.
The approval of the sale by the SCC follows a special meeting held on June 29 where the NRTC members voted to sell the landline assets to Shentel. The proposed transaction was contingent upon approval from Virginia SCC. The proposed purchase price is $600,000. The proceeds of the sale, net of expenses, will be allocated to NRTC members after the transaction closes. As the Cooperative is dissolved, patronage allocations will be paid to the members.
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