Property, Plant and Equipment

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2022

Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]

Property, plant and equipment consist of the following:


(in thousands)	Estimated Useful Lives	December 31, 2022		December 31, 2021
Land		$	3,722	$	3,771
Land improvements	10 years	3,483		3,478
Buildings and structures	10 - 45 years	93,461		96,323
Cable and fiber	15 - 30 years	593,771		453,405
Equipment and software	4 - 8 years	317,347		391,293
Plant in service		1,011,784		948,270
Plant under construction		144,534		79,963
Total property, plant and equipment		1,156,318		1,028,233
Less: accumulated depreciation and amortization		(468,765)		(474,071)
Property, plant and equipment, net		$	687,553	$	554,162

Property, plant and equipment, net increased due primarily to capital expenditures in the Broadband segment driven by our Glo Fiber market expansion. The Company's accounts payable as of December 31, 2022 included amounts associated with capital expenditures of approximately $43.8 million. Cash flows for accounts payable and capital expenditures exclude this activity. Depreciation and amortization expense was $68.2 million, $54.4 million, and $48.0 million for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021, and 2020, respectively. In 2022, the Company improved internal controls over property, plant, and equipment. The enhanced controls identified fully depreciated assets no longer held by the Company. Accordingly, the Company made adjustments to reduce the cost of buildings and structures, cable and fiber, and equipment and software by $0.3 million, $0.1 million, and $62.9 million, respectively, with an offset to accumulated depreciation at December 31, 2022.

In the fourth quarter of 2021, due to the availability of grants awarded under various governmental initiatives in support of rural fiber to the home (“FTTH”) broadband network expansion projects, we decided to cease further expansion of our Beam branded fixed wireless edge-out strategy, which is offered under our Broadband segment. During the second quarter of 2022, the Company permanently ceased operating 20 of our 55 Beam fixed wireless sites. Consequently, Shentel recorded an impairment charge of $4.1 million. On August 23, 2022, the Company entered into a definitive asset purchase agreement (the “Spectrum Purchase Agreement”) with a wireless carrier pursuant to which the Company agreed to sell certain FCC spectrum licenses and leases utilized in the Company's Beam branded fixed wireless service for total consideration of approximately $21.5 million, composed of $17.7 million cash and approximately $3.8 million of liabilities to be assumed by the wireless carrier (the “Spectrum Transaction”). The Spectrum Transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2023, subject to the receipt of regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. As a result of the Spectrum Transaction, the Company ceased its remaining Beam operations in the fourth quarter of 2022 and accelerated depreciation for remaining Beam network assets. Shentel recorded $7.4 million in accelerated depreciation for the year ended December 31, 2022.