Joint Minister for Finance - nbn Corporate Plan confirms record performance

31 August 2017

NBN Co Limited’s (nbn’s) 2018 Corporate Plan released today shows the National Broadband Network (NBN) rollout remains firmly on track to deliver fast broadband to all Australian homes and businesses by its target of 2020.

The plan will see three-quarters of Australian premises able to access a service over the nbn network within the next ten months, with 4.4 million active services. These forecasts are in line with targets set more than two years ago.

Network construction is at its peak with more than 24,000 contractors and 6,700 direct nbn employees working hard to build and connect the network that will benefit all Australians no matter where they live.

There are some 2,500 Australian subcontracting businesses engaged either directly or indirectly to construct, operate and maintain the nbn network Australia-wide.  Over 70 per cent of nbn’s procurement spend to date has been on local content – that is, Australian manufacturing, construction, installation and support activities. nbn will spend $6 billion this financial year on procured goods and services, over 80 per cent locally.

The estimated peak funding remains unchanged at $49 billion. nbn forecasts that its revenue will almost double in the coming financial year, from $1 billion in 2016-17 to $1.9 billion in 2017-18.

End-user activations was higher than forecast in 2016-17 and nbn has achieved some significant milestones recently, including:

• surpassing six million premises able to access nbn services

• a fivefold increase in connected customers over the past two years

• the introduction of new fibre-to-the-curb technology that will be available from 2018 to around one million premises

• enabling  Sky Muster satellite users to access 50 per cent more peak data and twice as much off-peak data  

• exceeding $1 billion in annual revenue.

The 2018 plan also demonstrates the company has a heightened focus on the consumer experience and includes a strategy for the transition after the 2020 rollout target is reached.