At the time of the announcement, the company also confirmed that it has selected its Australian manufacturer of fibre optic cable for the first phase of the project.
“Australia’s manufacturing sector will lead the charge as our economy rebounds from Covid-19,” said Federal Minister for the Digital Economy, Senator Jane Hume,
“The Morrison Government is backing Aussie manufacturing with our $1.3 Billion Modern Manufacturing Initiative, but we also need Australian businesses to support local suppliers whenever possible, and this is a great example of that.”
“High quality infrastructure is one of the key components of our government’s Digital Economy Strategy. Projects like HyperOne will ultimately help us to grow the economy while also creating more and better paying jobs.”
Speaking at the launch event at AFL’s factory floor in Melbourne, HyperOne founder Bevan Slattery announced confirmed that work on Phase 1a has started, which is a 2,300km diverse fibre loop connecting Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne also known as Australia’s “Cloud Alley”.
According to Slattery the first stage of the network, which is due to be completed by December 2022, would deliver a critical upgrade to digital infrastructure.
“We are thrilled to have started construction works between Sydney and Melbourne, the two largest centres for cloud in Australia. This will provide much-needed additional capacity between these locations,” said Slattery.
“Importantly, this phase of construction will form the foundation of the project as we push the cloud to other capital cities and parts of regional Australia that also require greater connectivity. Connecting “Cloud Alley” first will ensure that everywhere we build thereafter is able to take advantage of the access and capability.”
AFL Global was awarded the contract to build this first phase of the project, which includes 7,600km of fibre for the first phase of network construction. Manufacturing will take place at AFL Global’s Melbourne factory.
“AFL’s leading R&D in cable design and development has been brilliant. Together, we are extremely pleased to be delivering Australia’s first backbone that is 100% designed for Australia’s conditions," added Slattery.
“The cable will have three layers of protection including a termite-protected sheath, rodent-protected inner sheath and a non-metallic armouring to provide even more protection from Australia’s harsh soil conditions. HyperOne will not only be Australia’s first hyperscale backbone, but also Australia’s first 100% ducted or armoured backbone.”
Commenting on the news the CEO of AFL said that the contract with HyperOne was an important investment in Australian manufacturing.
“This is a great vote of confidence not only in our business, but in our domestic manufacturing sector,” said Tony Dunstan, CEO of Australia and New Zealand, AFL.
“Producing the cable here means local jobs will be created every step of the way with this project.”
