The Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunication Commission has announced that five transport projects will receive up to $26.7 million in funding from the Broadband Fund.
Over 550 km of fibre transport network will be built in Saskatchewan, British Columbia, and Ontario, benefitting 41 communities, three of which are Indigenous. Once the networks are completed, they will provide improved transport connectivity, including more than 8,000 households and up to 26 institutions that provide a public service, such as schools, medical facilities and libraries.
The Broadband Fund will allocate funding to BH Telecom Corporation in Saskatchewan, along with one company in Ontario and three in British Columbia.
The companies will have to provide wholesale access to their infrastructure to entities that wish to offer retail Internet services.
It is anticipated that construction for most projects will start in the second half of 2021 at the earliest.