British telecoms operator BT could raise more than £2 billion (about $2.7 billion) from the copper it is stripping out of its old phone network as it switches to fibre. The stockpile was previously valued at around £1.5 billion, Engadget reports.
The copper network is being retired gradually, and rising metal prices have turned it into a valuable asset. Demand is driven by data centres built for artificial intelligence, renewable energy and the electrification of industry. Global copper consumption is expected to grow significantly over the next decade.
The replacement work is handled by BT’s subsidiary Openreach, which is building a full-fibre network. It plans to connect 30 million households by the end of the decade. Germany is moving in the same direction, with its regulator preparing a phased shutdown of copper lines.
Openreach has recovered more than 22,000 tonnes of copper from the old network since 2023. Almost 10,000 tonnes of that came in the last financial year. “Copper is one of the key materials of the modern economy,” said Abby Chicken, the company’s head of sustainability.
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The cables will be processed by EMR, which has signed a deal with BT. The operator has already received £99 million as an advance payment for the copper recovered so far.
Higher copper prices have also attracted criminals. Cable theft has become more frequent, and in some areas entire neighborhoods are left without service. Operators in the United States face the same problem and have joined forces against cable thieves. Openreach has its answer — parts of its cables are marked with synthetic DNA and a substance visible under ultraviolet light.
