Managing the first phase of rolling out ultrafast broadband

Auditor-General's report published, Crown Fibre Holdings Limited: Managing the first phase of rolling out ultrafast broadband

The Auditor-General’s report Crown Fibre Holdings Limited: Managing the first phase of rolling out ultrafast broadband was presented to the House of Representatives today.

Crown Fibre Holdings Limited (Crown Fibre) was set up to form commercial partnerships with, then oversee the work of, commercial companies that would build a network of fibre-optic cables throughout the country to provide ultrafast broadband, enabling faster and more reliable access to the internet.

We looked at how well Crown Fibre managed work to build the first phase of the network passing the homes of 75% of the population and connecting it directly to businesses, health providers, and schools.

Crown Fibre has managed commercial partner rollout performance effectively, and has implemented a testing programme to assure quality. The proportion of the network that has been built and passed the quality testing programme so far is ahead of schedule and the first phase of the roll-out looks likely to be delivered on time and within budget by December 2019. The network looks likely to meet all of the targets set by the Government.

Crown Fibre prepared well for the roll-out and ran a sound process to contract with suitable commercial partners. Effective relationships with commercial partners developed over time thanks to efforts on all sides. Crown Fibre can and does influence the performance of its commercial partners.

Our report includes lessons for other parts of government when setting up and managing projects, and when working with partners.

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