SWIFT is proud to announce that it has awarded an additional contract in Lambton County to Brooke Telecom Co-operative Ltd. (Brooke Telecom) to implement a fibre-to-the-home project to connect approximately 530 underserved households and businesses in rural areas between Petrolia, Wyoming, Watford and Alvinston.
“I want to thank the County of Lambton for the additional funding contribution it has provided to make today’s newly announced project possible,” says David Mayberry, SWIFT Board Chair. “Today, as we award funding for a fifth project in Lambton County we can now proudly say that collectively more than 4400 homes and businesses, approximately 50% of the underserved premises in the County will now have access to some of the fastest, most reliable broadband available anywhere. Congratulations Lambton County this is truly an outstanding achievement.”
To support the $6.1 million project, Lambton County has provided an additional contribution of $2.6 million to further expand fibre connectivity within the region.
“The advancement of this project will have a very positive impact in additional areas of Lambton County,” says Bill Weber, Lambton County Warden and SWIFT Board Member. “We are pleased to have been able to provide the additional funding to make this project happen in partnership with SWIFT and Brooke Telecom as we move a step closer to closing the connectivity gap in the province.”
“We want to squeeze every last dollar out of the funds that have been made available to SWIFT to expand broadband in Southwestern Ontario, however after initially awarding contracts in Lambton County some money was left on the table,” says Barry Field, Executive Director. SWIFT. “With the strategic investment made by the County of Lambton, SWIFT was able to leverage the unspent funds to award a fifth project that otherwise wouldn’t have happened.”
Brooke Telecom, which replied to SWIFT’s initial Lambton County Request for Proposal (RFP), will also invest more than $2.7 million into the project and will receive more than $770,400 in federal and provincial funding to deploy fibre along a 150 kilometres of underserved road by the end of 2022.
“Brooke Telecom’s mission is to deliver communication services to our local communities with exceptional customer experiences and this project will allow us to continue to do this for our existing co-operative members as well as provide the opportunity to expand our rural fibre services,” says Geoff Greening, General Manager, Brooke Telecom. “Recent experience has proven the value of these investments for the sustainability of rural communities and the residents and businesses that call these communities home.”
Today’s newly announced project will deliver internet speed up to 1 gigabit per second and is part of SWIFT’s $209 million Southwestern Ontario broadband expansion plan.
Quick Facts:
- SWIFT, in partnership with the federal and provincial governments and private sector investors, previously announced a combined investment of $11.6 million to deliver high-speed internet to more than 3,900 underserved homes and businesses across Lambton County and within Kettle and Stony Point First Nation.
- Today’s newly announced project, with the support of Lambton County’s $2.6 million contribution, will bring broadband access to an additional 530 underserved homes and businesses within the County.
- In total, SWIFT has awarded funding to support five (5) fibre-optic projects in Lambton County to provide more than 4400 homes and businesses, approximately 50% of the underserved premises in the County, with access to fast, reliable broadband internet.
- Total broadband infrastructure investment in the County of Lambton is now valued at approximately $17.7 million.
About SWIFT:
Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology (SWIFT) is a non-profit regional broadband project initiated by the Western Ontario Wardens’ Caucus to subsidize the construction of high-speed broadband networks across Southwestern Ontario.
The project was approved for funding under the New Building Canada Fund – Small Communities Fund (NBCF-SCF), a joint federal and provincial infrastructure funding program, and leverages additional funding from municipal partners and private sector investors to improve access to broadband services across the region.
Media Contact:
Melissa O’Brien
[email protected]
Manager, Communications and Stakeholder Relations
Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology
226.256.1640
