HALIFAX — Develop Nova Scotia, a Crown corporation responsible for advancing high-speed Internet access projects across the province, provided an update today on the progress of the Internet for Nova Scotia Initiative.
Since the first projects were announced in February 2020, about 47,000 of approximately 90,000 homes and businesses now have the network in place to provide new or improved high-speed Internet, says an emailed update.
“To date, 3,200 kilometres of fibre has been laid and 19 towers installed. 4,300 kilometres of make ready work is complete,” reads the update.
Bell’s first-round projects were completed on time, and Xplornet’s wireless project was completed ahead of schedule, according to the update. First-round projects with Eskasoni Communications, Seaside Communications, Cross Country, and Mainland Communications “are expected to be substantially complete by the end of this year,” the email says.
Round two projects announced in September 2020, and additional scope expansion projects announced in November 2020 and January 2021, are well underway, according to Develop Nova Scotia.
“The goal is that all homes and businesses included in the projects underway as part of the Internet for Nova Scotia Initiative will have access to improved network by the end of 2023, with connections being made every day between now and then,” the organization says in its email.
Individual project timelines for areas not yet complete have recently been updated at internet.developns.ca.
Develop Nova Scotia’s 2020/2021 annual report, which includes its year in review, is available here.
