Gillard 'launches' stage two of NBN in Tasmania

Stuart Corner
Tuesday, 04 October 2011 13:21

IT Industry - Development

Australia's embattled prime minister, Julia Gillard, seems to be clutching at good-news straws. She has today 'launched' the stage two NBN rollout in Tasmania, in Kingston Beach. But it has in fact been underway for some time, did not start in Kingston Beach and is behind schedule.

Gillard's office issued a press release saying: "Prime Minister Julia Gillard today launched the Stage Two roll out of the NBN at Kingston Beach in Tasmania. The NBN will deliver speeds of up to 100Mbps to the 950 houses at Kingston Beach within 12 months. The Stage Two rollout in Tasmania will employ 146 workers to take the NBN past 11,150 homes and businesses, including in Sorell, Deloraine, Triabunna, as well as Kingston Beach."

However NBN Co announced the stage two rollout schedule in late April, saying that it would start in late May in Triabunna and Sorell, to be followed by Deloraine and St Helens, Kingston Beach, George Town and South Hobart.

Its performance report to the joint committee on the National Broadband Network lodged by communications minister Stephen Conroy and minister for finance and regulation, Penny Wong, on 23 September, revealed that this schedule had slipped somewhat but that the stage two rollout was well under way. It said "Work commenced in Triabunna and Sorell in late July 2011, followed by Deloraine and St Helens, Kingston Beach, George Town and South Hobart."

According to NBN Co's performance report, "Planning approvals for the initial sites has already been obtained, and NBN Co's agent, Aurora, commenced make-ready works in early May 2011 in these sites in preparation for the fibre rollout. Construction in each location is expected to take from approximately four to six months depending on the size of the site.

A table indicated that rollout had also started in Deloraine and George Town and that it would start in Kingston Beach in mid October and in St Helens and South Hobart in late October. A total of approximately 11,150 homes and businesses are within the fibre footprint across the seven sites.

When he welcomed NBN Co's April announcement Conroy released a table indicating that work was due to commence by the end of September at all sites except South Hobart.

Gillard said the stage two rollout in Tasmania would employ 146 workers. When it announced the schedule in April, NBN Co said it had set a rolling schedule that "makes the most efficient use of the workforce given the geographic spread of the locations."