Rural ISP Xplore announced Wednesday significant progress on its broadband expansion project in Prince Edward Island, saying the Woodstock, N.B.-based company has connected more homes to fibre and fixed wireless internet in P.E.I. than originally planned.
The ongoing project is supported by Xplore’s private investment as well as a contribution from the federal government through Infrastructure Canada’s Rural and Northern Infrastructure stream of the Investing in Canada Plan.
Xplore says it has already connected nearly 3,400 premises in P.E.I. to gigabit-speed fibre internet and it anticipates reaching nearly 4,000 premises by August 2024, which is approximately 1,000 more than originally promised.
In addition, more than 20,000 P.E.I. households can now connect to download speeds up to 100 Mbps on Xplore’s fixed wireless network, which is well in excess of the planned 17,000, Xplore says. “The majority of towers were equipped with 5G technology for quicker response times and a smoother and more efficient online experience,” the company says in a press release.
So far, Xplore has laid approximately 420 kilometres of fibre infrastructure including a 15-kilometre cable inside the Confederation Bridge corridor, which marks the first telecom cable to be placed inside the bridge’s utility corridor in nearly 25 years, Xplore says. This cable will connect Xplore’s P.E.I. fibre network to its fibre network across the Maritimes. “A projected additional 234 kilometres of fibre are expected to be completed this year,” Xplore says.
“This is meaningful progress with a purpose,” Rizwan Jamal, Xplore’s president and CEO, said in the release. “By surpassing our commitments for fibre and fixed wireless connectivity, we are ensuring that more residents across Prince Edward Island have access to the benefits of high-speed Internet.”
“Ensuring all Islanders have access to high-speed internet is so vitally important,” said Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, on behalf of Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities. “This progress update is proof that our investments in rural broadband are working, and we’re well on track to meet our goal of connecting up to 30,000 Islanders by August 2024.”
Xplore’s milestones in P.E.I. build on the company’s recent completion of a major fibre internet network expansion project in Quebec. Xplore says it is also starting construction on a fibre and 5G home internet project to connect 98 rural municipalities across Ontario.
Photo supplied by Xplore.
