The Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB), Valley Fiber Limited (Valley Fiber) and DIF Capital Partners (DIF) have signed an agreement to invest a total of CAD 260 million (US$ 206.67 million) to increase broadband through the Southern Manitoba Fibre project. The Southern Manitoba Fibre project involves 2,550 kilometers of fibreoptic cabling, which will connect up to 49,000 underserved households with dedicated fiber-to-the-home in rural municipalities.

Based on the terms of the agreement, the CIB will invest CAD 130 million (US$ 103.33 million) and DIF will contribute CAD 130 million (US$ 103.33 million) to the project, while Valley Fiber will be responsible for all aspects of construction, installation, operations and maintenance of the new broadband service. 

In addition, the project will include last-mile infrastructure with underground fiber cables and networking equipment and will offer broadband speeds up to 1 Gbps (gigabit per second), improving telecommunications services for local residents, businesses and public service delivery.