High-speed internet access to be expanded to more rural, remote communities

The federal and provincial governments announced more than 80,000 homes in rural Alberta will have access to high-speed internet by the end of the year.

The Canadian and Alberta governments are together spending nearly $225 million to increase high-speed internet access across the province.

Currently, about 95.3 per cent of households in Alberta have high-speed internet access, up from 82.6 per cent in 2017.

The 26 projects planned with the new funding will bring that figure to 98.6 per cent, the governments expect. The increase represents about 82,500 households in 750 communities.

“Reliable internet access, it’s essential infrastructure,” said Rod Frank, the mayor of Strathcona County which consists of rural and urban communities, said at a news conference in Ardrossan, east of Edmonton, Friday morning.

“It means growth. It means higher service levels. It means better access to customers.”

Saskatchewan MP and Secretary of State for Rural Development Buckley Belanger also announced $24.5 million to bring internet to hundreds of remote Indigenous households.

Including funding from private partners, the total investment being made into the projects is more than $350 million. All are scheduled to be completed by 2027.

Alberta and Ottawa partnered in 2022 to invest $780 million in high-speed internet access in the province, Alberta through its broadband strategy and Ottawa through its $3-billion Universal Broadband Fund. The federal government is aiming to provide internet to every Canadian by 2030.

“I want folks to know we are going to keep going until the job is finished, especially in the communities that are hardest to reach and too often last in line,” Belanger promised.

According to him, these last communities – where fibre and signal tower installation is not possible – will receive internet from low-Earth orbit satellites operated by an unnamed Canadian firm.

“When you take all three of these together, there is absolutely a path to universal connectivity and we’re just grateful to be partners with the federal government in making sure that we get the job done,” said Alberta Technology and Innovation Minister Nate Glubish.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Connor Hogg