Australia's NBN Picks Corning for Passive Optical

Corning has been selected as a primary NBN Co supplier of optical fiber cable and hardware for Australia’s National Broadband Network (NBN) initiative. Corning and NBN Co have signed a contract for the supply of optical cable and hardware that could be valued at up to AUS $1.2 billion over the contract period with an initial purchase commitment of AUS $400 million. An additional tender will be issued for the second half of the deployment at a later date.

NBN intends to pass 93 percent of Australian homes and businesses (roughly 10 million) with an open-access network providing download speeds of 100 Mbps within the next 10 years.

Corning will supply its FlexNAP terminal distribution system with RPX™ ribbon cable for aerial installations and ALTOS ribbon cable featuring an enhanced low-loss ITU-T G.652.D compliant SMF-28e+ LL fiber for underground installations. The company said its solution has been adapted for the harshness of the Australian landscape.

“Corning is delighted to have been selected as a major strategic partner for NBN Co. The size and scope of the NBN project will enable Corning to invest in both new equipment and technologies for our Australian facility,” said Rainer Dittrich, managing director of Corning Cable Systems Pty. Ltd. “We look forward to supporting Australia’s vision and leadership in broadband deployment.”http://www.corning.com/cablesystems