<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?> <docID>336453</docID> <postdate>2025-01-13 12:51:25</postdate> <headline>NBN rollout to be bolstered with $3b network upgrade</headline> <body><p><img class="size-full wp-image-305460" src="https://citynews.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/nbn-resized-e1709761904279.jpeg" alt="" width="900" height="600" /></p> <caption>The fibre-to-the-node network will be upgraded to more than 620,000 homes and businesses.</caption> <p><span class="kicker-line">By<strong> Andrew Brown</strong> in Canberra</span></p> <p><strong>More internet users will be able to access faster speeds online, with the federal government providing a $3 billion boost to complete work on the National Broadband Network.</strong></p> <p>The work will involve upgrading fibre-to-the-node network to more than 620,000 homes and businesses, with more than half in regional areas.</p> <p>While the upgrades will begin straight away, the rollout will take until the end of 2030 to complete.</p> <p>NBN Co, the company responsible for the broadband network, will also spend $800 million on the works.</p> <p>Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the completion of the rollout would strengthen the national network.</p> <p>"It is an important part of building Australia's future as well as the day-to-day activities that occur," he told reporters in Canberra on Monday.</p> <p>"When Australians own their NBN, high speed internet remains affordable for all Australians, and only Labor will deliver this."</p> <p>The announcement comes as the federal government aims to pass laws to keep the NBN in public hands, before parliament resumes in February.</p> <p>Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said the financial boost would provide essential infrastructure.</p> <p>"Completing the NBN fibre upgrades will provide more businesses and more consumers with equitable access to world-class connectivity," she said.</p> <p>"Communities across Australia are going to see this economic uplift and they expect world-class connectivity across the country to unlock the full potential of this investment."</p> <p>Chief executive of NBN Co Ellie Sweeney said the upgrades would help to meet online needs of customers well into the future.</p> <p>"This is the final piece of the puzzle, if you will, around the fibre-to-the-node network upgrade," she said.</p> <p>"These collective upgrades, including today's announcement will mean access to faster and more reliable Internet for millions of Australians."</p> </body>