A new Territory industry is taking root as fibre optic roll-out rolls on
An almost $8m government investment could be the start of a new high-tech industry in the NT. Read what it is.
Business
Don't miss out on the headlines from Business. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Darwin and Port Hedland have become the fourth and fifth Australian entry points for international connectivity with completion of the 1000km fibre-optic cable linking the Territory with South-East Asia.
The $100m cable links developer Vocus’ existing northwest system from Port Hedland to Darwin with the company’s Australia Singapore Cable that stretches 7000km from Perth to Singapore.
Combined, these cables form the Darwin-Jakarta-Singapore system – a $500m investment stretching 7700km between Darwin and Singapore which delivers low-latency connectivity between Northern Australia and Asia.
The cable went live on Saturday in a special ceremony on board the Ile de Re cable ship.
The DJSC is a key part of Vocus’ $1bn investment strategy, which also includes ‘Project Horizon’, a new 2000km inland fibre route from Perth to Port Hedland which will connect with the DJSC in Port Hedland. It will establish a redundant fibre path route from Perth to Port Hedland.
The Darwin-Jakarta-Singapore cable lands on Mindil Beach and is already in place as part of the existing northwest cable system to Port Hedland.
Vocus said submarine cables were the global superhighways of the internet – 97 per cent of the world’s internet traffic is carried by submarine cables, so while we’re all mostly connecting devices through wi-fi or mobile networks, those wireless services are connected to the internet via fibre optic cables.
The NT government invested $7.9m to secure the DJSC and speaking at last week’s opening, Chief Minister Natasha Fyles was stoked at the benefits the project will bring.
“All digital highways lead into or through Darwin and that will equal jobs of the future, while growing our digital industry,” she said.
Vocus Chief Executive Officer Ellie Sweeney said the DJSC would deliver high-speed capacity.
“The DJSC system will deliver this high-capacity connectivity straight into the heart of Darwin, establishing Australia’s north as a new data hub for the Asia Pacific region.
“The DJSC connects to the ‘Terabit Territory’ inter-capital fibre backbone from Darwin to Adelaide and Brisbane, which Vocus upgraded with a 25-times capacity increase in 2021. Combined, the DJSC and Terabit Territory fibre network allows data from the Singapore to flow through Darwin to all mainland capitals on Vocus’ national fibre network.”
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said the switch-on of the cable market was an important milestone.
“This project will help narrow the digital divide, support more reliable communications into the future, and establish Darwin as a leading connectivity hub in the region,” she said.
“Diversification of our international cable landing points is strategically important for Australia’s telecommunications resilience. Removing our reliance on a single cable landing point minimises vulnerabilities and increases our ability to remain connected.”
‘Kneeling on my throat’: Lizard sculptor unloads on public service
The feud between the NTG and the Tennant Creek lizard sculptor has intensified. Read the latest.
In photos: Surf’s up as monsoon looms for Top End
While eager surfers took advantages of the churning ocean off Nightcliff, a leading Northern Territory knowledge hub has warned of the potential impacts to the agricultural sector if the tropical monsoon does not deliver.