CHARLOTTETOWN — The government of Prince Edward Island announced Tuesday some changes to the PEI Broadband Fund, including a new funding stream for Internet service providers to upgrade or expand their networks to reach more PEI residents.
The new Accelerated Internet Service Provider Pilot will provide grants of up to 90% of eligible costs with a maximum of $150,000 per project. A call for applications is now open and will be accepted until September 8. Projects will be subject to a completion date of December 31, 2020. ISPs can apply for funding by visiting the PEI Broadband Fund webpage here. More information about the Accelerated ISP Pilot is available here.
The PEI Broadband Fund has also added a Residential Pilot funding stream which allows Island residents to apply for funding (maximum of $5,000 per household) to purchase equipment that provides connectivity to wireless broadband services. Eligible equipment costs include antennas, tripods, towers and hydro poles.
In addition, it was announced Island Telecom Services has been granted funding to upgrade Internet service and coverage for customers in the Long River area.
In March, the PEI government announced it had signed agreements with Bell and Xplornet to improve Internet service for Islanders across rural PEI.
Earlier this month, the PEI Broadband Fund provided an update on the rollout schedule for the approved Bell projects. Two broadband improvement and expansion projects are expected to be completed by August 30, including the first phase of projects in the areas of Charlottetown and Rustico, PEI. In addition, two projects in Souris and Tignish have already been completed. For more information about the Bell rollout schedules, please click here.
More information about all approved PEI Broadband Fund projects and schedule updates are available here.
