CALGARY and TORONTO — Alberta-based Crown Capital Partners Inc. announced today its subsidiary Community Network Partners Inc. (CNPI) has been selected as an Internet service provider under the Ontario Connects program announced last July.
Through the Ontario Connects program, the Ontario government has committed to investing almost $4 billion to connect all households in the province to high-speed Internet by December 2025.
CNPI works with municipalities and communities to develop, own and operate open access networks, according to Crown Capital Partners’ website.
In connection with the Ontario Connects program, “CNPI will design, construct, own and operate a broadband network that will deliver high-speed internet to residential and business customers in select service areas in Northern Ontario,” according to a press release.*
The value of the contract awarded through Ontario Connects is approximately $150 million, “which is expected to be a material proportion of the network cost,” the release says.
CNPI expects to immediately start design and construction of the broadband network, which will bring Internet service to approximately 9,400 households, according to the release. Network construction is expected to be completed before the end of 2025, the release adds.
“Access to reliable, high-speed connectivity is essential for living, learning and thriving in today’s digitally connected world,” said Chris Johnson, president and CEO of Crown Capital Partners, in the release.
“We’ve been working vigorously to resolve the digital divide for Canadians living in remote and rural regions, and we’re delighted to be part of the Government of Ontario’s transformational program to make this goal a reality for all Ontarians.”
*Update May 13: Cartt.ca has been looking into this further after a reader suggested Crown Capital Partners may not have actually been awarded the contract noted in our story yet.
Infrastructure Ontario has not officially announced the recipients of the contracts from its reverse auction. “IO is working to finalize contracts for the reverse auction program, government is in the caretaker period, and details will be forthcoming post-June,” a spokesperson told Cartt.ca via email.
A representative of Crown Capital Partners declined to provide Cartt.ca with more details of the project it announced when we reached out, only responding: “We are unable to share additional detail at this point and any media request would most likely flow through the government. As a public company, we were required to make some disclosure, which is what drove our press release.”
The Crown Capital Partners representative did not respond at all to a request from us to confirm whether a contract for the project mentioned in the release has in fact been awarded.
Cartt.ca understood the press release to mean the contract was awarded as it makes claims including that CNPI “will” build a network in connection with the program and because Crown Capital Partners’ CEO is quoted as saying “we’re delighted to be part of the Government of Ontario’s transformational program”.
Infrastructure Ontario did not provide Cartt.ca with a confirmation of the existence or status of any contract with Crown Capital Partners either and will not be providing further details on projects until they are officially announced.
All of this is to say, despite the press release issued by Crown Capital Partners, it is unconfirmed whether a contract has actually been awarded, or if it is merely a possibility one might be awarded in the future.
