Fibre speeds up internet in Taranaki

Sven Hanne (CEO of Stratford District Council), Neil Volzke (Stratford mayor) and Mike Ryan (Stakeholder Strategy Manager - Ultrafast Fibre) watch Broadspectrum technician Dion Wharepapa at work.

Ultrafast Fibre is underway with installation of high speed broadband in Stratford as well as Omokoroa and Ngaruawahia.

Fibre laying is being carried out simultaneously in the three towns.

The three areas are part of the second wave of fibre installation by Ultrafast Fibre (UFF) which has already successfully completed3000km fibre optic network to eight central North Island cities and towns.

The second wave of fibre deployment, which the three towns are part of, will also include Eltham, Inglewood and Waitara as well as Huntly, Kihikihi, Raglan, Putaruru, Te Puke, and Katikati.

UFF Chief Executive William Hamilton says the expanded network footprint has created a lot of interest from the towns which are benefiting.

"We know these smaller communities can hardly wait to be connected.

"We would love to deliver fibre to everyone immediately, but we do have a build programme to work through, stretching out for the next year or so."

He says it is likely the first three towns will be able to be connected through their internet service providers early in the New Year.

A recent world ranking in country-by-country broadband speeds put New Zealand in 30th position with a mean download speed of 16.6Mbs. Top ranked was Singapore with 55Mbs.

Mr Hamilton says the rankings are a good reminder to people that by connecting to Ultrafast Fibre in New Zealand, consumers can have internet speeds as good as anywhere in the world.

This month, a further 15 areas in Taranaki, Bay of Plenty and Waikato and Taranaki were awarded to UFF in a closed tender process run through Crown Infrastructure Partners (formerly Crown Fibre Holdings).

This third wave of extended footprint for UFF will reach a further 4500 homes and businesses over the next few years, and is a logical extension to many of the areas where UFF is currently working or planning fibre installation.

These additional locations will be connected following the second wave of connections.
UFF is 100 per cent Community Trust-owned through WEL Networks Ltd and Waipa Networks Ltd.