BT on track for estimated £2bn windfall from selling old copper amid AI boom
Telecoms company to benefit from soaring prices for recycled metal recovered from full-fibre broadband rollout BT is on track for an estimated £2bn-plus windfall over the next decade from selling off old copper cabling, as it cashes in on soaring prices amid the AI market frenzy and switches the UK’s network to full-fibre broadband. Copper is one of the main beneficiaries of the “electrification…
BT, the telecommunications company, is set to gain an estimated £2bn windfall over the next decade through the sale of old copper cabling, as it transitions the UK’s network to full-fibre broadband. The surge in copper prices, driven by the AI market boom and global shortage fears, is expected to significantly benefit BT. The metal achieved its highest closing price of $14,294 a metric tonne on Friday, nearing its record intraday high of $14,500 earlier this year.
BT has entered a recycling agreement with EMR, the UK's largest cable granulation company, and has already received £99m for thousands of tonnes of surplus stripped copper. This is the second such payment received by the telecoms company, after a £105m payment in 2024. BT recovered a record 9,147 tonnes of copper in the year to March 2025, more than tripling its haul from the previous year.
The forward sale agreements cover the delivery of about 20,000 tonnes of copper over four years, but do not include revenue from selling the metal on the spot market. The jump in copper prices has also made the metal a target for thieves, with BT reporting a 30% fall in copper theft in 2024. To combat the issue, Openreach, BT's subsidiary, has implemented various anti-theft measures, including coating miles of underground cables with synthetic DNA and UV tracer.
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