SA Power Networks has announced the construction of a new 150-kilometre-long fibre optic cable stretching between mainland South Australia and Kangaroo Island expected to transform telecommunications for thousands of businesses and households.
The $7m project will utilise undersea fibre cores built within the 15-kilometre continuous undersea 33,000 Volt power cable installed in 2018 to connect Kangaroo Island with Cape Jervis on the southern Fleurieu Peninsula.
The South Australian Business Chamber 2020 Regional Voice report highlighted that telecommunications coverage and digital infrastructure were among the top issues affecting business on Kangaroo Island.
At the time of the survey, the Island had the lowest rate of NBN connection with only 41% of businesses connected. Businesses who were connected had the lowest satisfaction rates of any region with only 11% of businesses satisfied with their connection.
SA Power Networks Head of Corporate Affairs, Paul Roberts says “Currently KI relies on a microwave link and it just does not have the speeds and capacity offered by our fibre optic cable, which is potentially capable of delivering second to none high data speeds and remote cloud storage data services.”
SA Power Networks is currently negotiating with various telecommunications businesses offering them the opportunity to utilise the fibre optic cable to deliver improved services for their customers on Kangaroo Island.
The South Australian Business Chamber is currently collecting responses for the 2023 – 2024 Regional Voice Survey.
