The Growing Rural Infrastructure and Tower Construction Industry
The event of the National Association of Tower Erectors—NATE Unite—focused on rural infrastructure, complementing AgAmerica’s ventures into tower lending.
The last days of February and the first days of March played host to NATE Unite, the premier event of the National Association of Tower Erectors. Held in Ft Worth, Texas, from February 27th to March 2nd, the event brought together NATE members from all facets of the tower construction industry to focus on education, marketing, networking, and the development of solidity between NATE members. Explore the offerings of the NATE Unite event and why AgAmerica has entered the lucrative realm of tower lending.
NATE Unite Details
A variety of educational sessions and trainings were offered during the five-day event for attendees in both the technical and the business side of tower construction companies. Over 20 educational sessions such as “Working Capital is Essential for Your Business: What You Need to Know” and “The Changing Landscape of Telecommunications Infrastructure” gave attendees a wealth of information about the rural infrastructure industry.
AgAmerica’s Forays in Rural Infrastructure and Tower Construction
AgAmerica first got into rural infrastructure with cellular tower lending. New cellular towers are in high demand to keep pace with the growth in the mobile industry. Additionally, access to infrastructure modernization is vital to the success of agriculture and rural communities.
The tower construction industry is growing quickly and is forecast to continue to expand at a steady rate to match increasing cellular demands. The current number for 2017 global mobile traffic is at 10.7 Exabytes (EB), according to a Cisco Visual Networking Index Forecast from 2015. Usage is forecast to increase by 2.9 EB per month, essentially doubling and then some to reach 24.2 EB by 2019.
Infrastructure financing is also an attractive investment for reasons beyond continued demand. The cellular tower industry is characterized by several favorable features, such as the communications companies that traditionally lease cell phone towers are large, national, and financially stable.
Furthermore, the companies that lease cellular towers look for long-term leases, and they have a low probability of “churning” or moving their operations to another tower. This all makes an infrastructure loan a stable and well-performing investment opportunity.
AgAmerica Lending’s rural infrastructure loans are mainly in cellular phone towers, but they could also be for projects like broadcast towers or renewable energy facilities: solar farms, wind farms, and biomass plants. To find out more, contact one of AgAmerica’s infrastructure lending experts by calling 844-516-8176.
