Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Communications Minister Paul Fletcher announced the mobile projects on Thursday
Addressing connectivity issues in the outer-urban fringe TPG, Optus and Telstra will share a $28.2 million in federal government grants for 66 projects aimed at addressing mobile phone blackspots
According to a breakdown of the projects TPG is funded to deliver 28 projects, while Optus and Telstra are funded for 22 and 16, respectively.
A backgrounder information leak also reveals that the 66 projects, which span 50 sites (16 are collaborative), are valued between $624,000 and $1.45 million each and will be completed by the end of June 2024.
The majority of the projects will take place in Victoria (27), followed by Queensland (13), Western Australia (12), New South Wales (10), South Australia (3) and Tasmania (1).
Communications Minister Paul Fletchers office said the 66 mobile projects would improve mobile coverage on the urban fringe across Australia.
“Improving coverage on the urban fringe will help communities access vital information during emergencies, seek help if needed and stay in touch with loved ones,” said Fletcher
The government is now planning to invest a further $78.4 million in projects that address mobile phone and connectivity issues under the ‘connecting regional Australia initiative’.
Last month the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications revealed there would be a $40 million underspend on mobile blackspots this financial year.
With the inclusion of Covid-19 restrictions and multiple flooding events this put the underspend down to a number of different factors,
