Northpower wants more UFB in Northland

Northpower is keen to be part of any further expansion of the Government’s ultra-fast broadband initiative.

In May last year the Northland electricity lines company completed New Zealand’s first UFB network build in Whangarei. At the time, Communications Minister Amy Adams said Whangarei was in the enviable position of getting a head start on the rest of the country with fibre available to more than 19,000 premises in the city.

Now Northpower would like to assist with putting fibre within reach of more Northlanders, says company Chair Nikki Davies-Colley.

“Northpower has always had a broader vision for fibre and this goes back to 2007 when we first began building our network,” says Mrs Davies-Colley.

“It has become clear that working in partnership with the Government and other local entities is a business model that can help achieve this.

“We are seeing first-hand the positive impact the Whangarei UFB network is having in the region. I am very excited about the potential for economic development, better education and more jobs in Northland. UFB is already starting to help deliver this. Northpower would like nothing more than to end the digital divide in Northland by taking fibre to all Northlanders - provided building such a network is financially viable.”

It is a sentiment echoed by Russell Shaw, the CEO of Far North lines company Top Energy.

“Top Energy is very pleased the Government is looking to do more in the UFB space in Northland and I hope we can be involved. Northland needs better infrastructure,” says Mr Shaw.

“If the business case stacked up, the funding was available and we could leverage off the Northpower Fibre build model, Top Energy would be very keen to see a fibre network in the Far North.

“We have been working closely with Northpower, the Far North District Council, Whangarei District Council and Northland Inc to investigate how a fibre rollout to the rest of Northland might look and we are very excited at the potential and what it could mean for our community,” says Mr Shaw.

Northpower Fibre has the highest uptake (16%) of any UFB fibre network in New Zealand.

There are already 3500 people connected to the Northpower Fibre network in Whangarei and that figure could double this year. Northpower is consistently connecting more than 50 Whangarei premises to UFB fibre every week.

ENDS

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