The New South Wales state government announced on Wednesday a $14.5 million investment into improving mobile and internet coverage across Central-West Orana, part of the larger development of the region’s Renewable Energy Zone (REZ).
The Minns Labor government has promised $14.5 million in funding under its Telecommunications Infrastructure Uplift Program, which will be offered as financial incentives to telecommunications providers to expand and upgrade network infrastructure as major renewable energy projects are built across the region.
The initiative is part of a larger $128 million investment ensuring that communities across the Central-West Orana REZ directly benefit from the delivery of so many new renewable energy projects.
Telecommunications providers will be able to apply for grants that cover up to 70 per cent of the cost of improving mobile and internet coverage in the Central-West Orana REZ, which is littered with communications blackspots that are often not commercially viable to fix.
It is hoped that communities throughout the region will soon be able to access high-speed internet services and better mobile phone signal strength.
“Regional areas suffer from too many telecommunications blackspots,” said Penny Sharpe, state minister for climate change and energy.
“This program will help fund the upgrades that communities have been calling for.
“Better coverage means safer, stronger and more connected communities, whether it’s farmers managing their operations, families accessing essential services, or emergency responders communicating when it matters most.”
Additional community benefit funding will continue to flow to the region through fees paid by renewable energy projects connecting to the REZ network. The program will be administered by EnergyCo with the NSW Telco Authority, with applications for funding set to open in the coming months.
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