Residents and small businesses on the northern parts of the Inverell and Moree Plains Shires are set to benefit from significant upgrades to the NBN Fixed Wireless network, aimed at enhancing internet speeds and expanding coverage across the region.
The ongoing upgrade works, specifically targeting the transmission towers in Atholwood and Boggabilla, are part of a nationwide initiative to meet the increasing data demands of regional Australia.
Over the coming weeks, some homes and businesses in the affected areas may experience temporary disruptions to their NBN service. While NBN is actively working to minimise these interruptions—such as migrating users to temporary connections—there will be instances where towers need to be taken offline.
The NBN Fixed Wireless technology connects homes and businesses in expanding regional areas to the network, utilising antennas installed on rooftops to receive signals from nearby transmission towers. Since July, many eligible areas across the country have begun to see availability of faster wholesale nbn network download speeds, reaching up to four times the speeds currently accessible through various retail service providers.
Tom O’Dea, head of NBN Local NSW, emphasized the urgency behind the upgrades and thanks the community for their patience.
“There is increasing demand for faster internet from homes and business across Australia and we are continuing to invest in the NBN network to stay ahead of demand,” O’Dea said.
“These tower works are critical to the delivery of our program but will mean some planned outages that may affect homes and businesses and their ability to use their nbn service while the work is underway.
“After the tower works are completed, we expect that faster download speeds during the busy period will become available across the NBN Fixed Wireless network.”
The upgrades form part of a larger $750 million investment in the NBN Fixed Wireless and NBN Sky Muster satellite networks, with $480 million sourced from the Australian Government and $270 million from NBN itself. Upon completion, the upgrade will increase the reach of the existing Fixed Wireless network by up to 50%. This expansion will enable the introduction of two new high-speed fixed wireless plans: Fixed Wireless Home Fast and Fixed Wireless Superfast.
Additionally, approximately 120,000 existing Sky Muster satellite-only premises will gain access to NBN Fixed Wireless for the first time, marking a significant milestone in improving connectivity for rural communities.
To ensure residents are informed, those potentially impacted by the outages have been notified through their retail service providers. Representatives from NBN will host sessions in Boggabilla on Tuesday, October 15, 2024, from 12 PM to 3 PM. These sessions will provide residents and local businesses with updates on the network upgrade programs, as well as personalised advice on connectivity options.
While most existing devices will remain compatible with the upgraded network, some homes and businesses may need to update their NBN devices to fully leverage the benefits of the enhancements. NBN will contact those affected directly to facilitate this process.
Residents interested in staying informed about the upgrades and their benefits can visit the nbn blog at www.nbnco.com.au/blog/the-nbn-project/delivering-abetter-broadband-experience-for-the-bush for further updates and resources.
Something going on in your part of the region you think people should know about? Send us a news tip or email newsdesk@netimes.com.au.