First fibre broadband cabinet milestone for Superfast Cymru project
Following significant government investment of over £50 million, parts of Bangor will become the first in Wales to get high speed fibre broadband as part of the multi-million pound Superfast Cymru project.
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The first fibre broadband cabinet will be unveiled today.
Superfast broadband is designed to provide an economic boost that will drive growth and investment, benefitting thousands of homes and businesses across the UK. Those in Bangor could be reaping the benefits of this investment as early as the spring. Further cabinets are now also being installed in other parts of the city as the roll-out gathers pace. Engineers will ultimately lay around 17,500 kilometres of optical fibre cable and install around 3,000 new fibre broadband cabinets in streets the length and breadth of Wales.
Communications Minister Ed Vaizey said:
This represents the dawn of a new age for superfast broadband in Wales. The UK Government has invested £57 million pounds in the Superfast Cymru project which will deliver fibre based broadband to 96% of homes and businesses in Wales by the end of 2015. The project will also create an estimated 2,500 full time jobs, and is a reminder of the massive contribution to economic growth that the Government’s nationwide roll-out of broadband continues to make.
The Government is investing £530 million to help take superfast broadband to rural areas and a further £150m for ultrafast urban broadband schemes, giving the UK the best superfast broadband in Europe by 2015. Bangor is amongst the first eight locations in Wales to benefit from the scheme, along with Caernarfon, Dolgellau, Menai Bridge, Porthmadog, Pwllheli, Ebbw Vale and Tredegar.
Notes to Editors
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Further details of the scheme in Wales are available on the Superfast Cymru website
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The initiative will take the total amount invested in Welsh fibre broadband to around £425 million when BT’s commercial investment is also taken into account. BT is investing approximately £220 million in Welsh fibre broadband with most of that going towards the Superfast Cymru project. Central Government, through Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) has provided £57 million and the Welsh Government is contributing £58 million. The Welsh Government is also in the final stages of completing the Major Project Notification process to secure European Regional Development Fund structural funding.
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