APG Group, a Netherlands-based asset manager, and Whitehelm Capital, an independently-owned infrastructure manager, on behalf of the Smart City Infrastructure Fund, have agreed to partner with SiFi Networks America (SiFi) to invest more than $75 million in the deployment of Smart-City ready digital infrastructure in the City of Fullerton, Calif.
The Smart City Infrastructure Fund — the first of its kind globally — was established by APG and Whitehelm Capital in November 2018 to provide long-term funding for Smart City infrastructure projects enabling cities and communities to become more inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.
Smart Cities is an urban development vision to integrate multiple information and communications technologies and sensor-enabled Internet of Things (IoT) solutions in a secure fashion to manage a city’s assets and processes. The roll-out of such developments at scale requires an effective combination of digital and physical components.
The roll-out of FiberCityTM, SiFi’s Network’s next generation of telecommunications, in Fullerton will not only provide a significant upgrade to Internet speeds and accommodate a growing demand for data from next generation devices in households and businesses, but it will also facilitate the proliferation of new Smart City solutions in key urban services, such as traffic control, street lighting and emergency services. Additionally, the fiber network will provide a platform for the future expansion of 5G mobile and IoT networks into the area.
The FiberCityTM network in Fullerton will be the inaugural investment for the Smart City Infrastructure Fund, and it is part of a broader partnership with SiFi over a pipeline of cities that have expressed an interest for similar digital infrastructure.
Graham Matthews, chief executive at Whitehelm Capital, said, “The Smart City Infrastructure Fund was established to be a catalyzing force for the development of Smart City infrastructure. Whitehelm is excited to partner with SiFi Networks to deliver a project that will provide the much-needed physical infrastructure that underpins Smart City developments and the use of digital intelligence for the delivery of existing urban services, while significantly improving the accessibility of high-speed broadband connectivity to all citizens of the City of Fullerton.”