OTTAWA – The governments of Canada and Ontario announced yesterday they are investing up to $24 million to bring high-speed Internet to up to 1,180 households in several areas of rural Ontario.
This includes households in areas near Brooke-Alvinston, Inwood, Oakdale, Oil City, Oil Springs, Pelee Island, Wheatley Harbour, Elmdale, rural areas near Tilbury, Birr, Clandeboye, Denfield and Lucan, according to a press release.
Internet service will be provided by Brooke Telecom Co-operative Ltd*, Quadro Communications and Gosfield North Communication.
The projects are part of the $1.2-billion partnership between the federal and provincial governments announced last July. Both levels of government contributed an equal amount to the partnership, with the federal government’s portion coming from the Universal Broadband Fund.
The federal government aims to connect all Canadians to high-speed Internet by 2030, while the provincial government plans to connect all Ontarians by 2025.
During a press conference yesterday, Irek Kusmierczyk, parliamentary secretary to the minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion said Brooke Telecom Co-operative Ltd, Quadro Communications and Gosfield North Communication are expected to complete their projects by December 2024, December 2026 and April 2023*, respectively.
The expected completion date for the Quadro Communications project falls after the provincial government’s 2025 deadline to connect everyone in the province.
A spokesperson for the Ontario government told Cartt.ca “All projects that Ontario is funding must be completed by December 31, 2025. This aligns with our commitment to bring high-speed internet access to every community by the end of 2025.”
The expectation extends to projects where there is funding from both the federal and provincial governments, despite the federal government having a different timeline for connecting Canadians.
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*A previous version of this story said service would be provided by Brooks Bay Cable (which is named in the government’s press release). However, Brooke Telecom Co-operative Ltd has since reached out to Cartt.ca to correct this error.
*Gosfield North Communication, which did not have a representative speak at the press conference yesterday, told Cartt.ca via email they are looking to complete their Peele Island fibre project in the first half of 2024.
