ELGIN COUNTY, Ont. — Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology (SWIFT) and the governments of Ontario and Canada announced last Friday the start of construction on two high-speed Internet projects that will expand broadband service to more than 1,100 homes and businesses in Elgin County, Ontario.
The Ontario and Canadian governments are each investing more than $1.68 million to help fund these projects through SWIFT, according to a government press release.
In partnership with SWIFT, North Frontenac Telephone Corporation (NFTC) began construction earlier this year to bring improved broadband access to 742 homes and businesses in the western section of Elgin Country in the municipalities of West Elgin and Dutton Dunwich, according to a press release from SWIFT.
For this project, the governments of Ontario and Canada have each committed more than $616,000 in funding to support construction of the broadband infrastructure, which will bring high-speed Internet access to the communities of Tyrconnell, Duttona Beach, New Glasgow, Port Glasgow and Churchville by September 2022. The NFTC project is using a combination of fibre and wireless technologies, SWIFT’s release says.
EH!tel Networks has started construction on the second project in Elgin County, which is a fibre-to-the-home network that will expand broadband service throughout the municipalities of Southwold and Dutton Dunwich.
This project, which is supported by approximately $2.15 million in joint government funding (more than $1.07 million each from Ontario and Canada), will deliver high-speed connectivity to 390 homes and businesses within the communities of Iona, Iona Station, Lawrence Station and Southwold.
The EH!tel Networks project is expected to be completed by December 2022, according to the government’s press release. SWIFT’s approved projects webpage says construction should be completed by the end of October 2022.
“Construction has now started in Elgin, with permits progressing nicely,” said Antonius Peeters, CEO and president of EH!tel Networks. “We also anticipate deploying more contractors in the upcoming months, which should help accelerate the build.”
