Wellington UFB deployment begins
Chorus began its deployment of ultra fast broadband (UFB) in the capital today in Kelson.
Chorus began its deployment of ultra fast broadband (UFB) in the capital today in Kelson.
Chorus began deployment of ultra fast broadband in Kelson, Lower Hutt this morning.
Minister for Communications and Information Technology Steven Joyce joined the company as it deployed the first UFB-enabling network, saying in a release that 9,200 premises would be passed with new fibre in the year to June 2012.
“By July next year the UFB rollout will be continuing in earnest across most of the region.”
The release said deployment would cover about 390,000 people as well as 7,900 business premises, more than 80 schools and more than 1,500 medical and other healthcare services.
The release said more than 1,100km of Chorus’ existing business fibre network in the region would be available at UFB prices to priority users - businesses, schools and health facilities by the fourth quarter. In total, it said, between the existing and new fibre, about 29,000 priority users and homes in the Wellington region would be passed by June 30, 2012.
The first suburbs to be connected in Wellington would be Kelson, Churton Park, Papakowhai, Aotea, Whitby, Mana, Cambourne and Plimmerton, with deployment soon underway in Central Masterton.
Mr Joyce said wholesale prices would be as low as half the price of current offerings for business services and residential customers would have a vastly improved service for as much, or less, as they currently pay.
Chorus’ release said the company was working with a range of retail service providers to develop and launch UFB wholesale services in 2012, and was opening up access to its existing business fibre area at reduced prices.
The release said Chorus had already begun roll out in Auckland, with work due to start in Blenheim, Dunedin, Napier, Palmerston North, Rotorua, Ashburton and Taupo in the next six months.
The release said UFB deployment plans for Feilding, Gisborne, Hastings, Greymouth, Invercargill, Kapiti, Levin, Nelson, Oamaru, Pukekohe, Queenstown, Timaru, Waiheke Island, Waiuku and Whakatane were still being developed.