Connected Coast Project set to enter construction phase with arrival of cable laying vessel

Project partners of the Connected Coast initiative aboard the
CanPac Valour Vessel at Campbell River Harbour today
(photo courtesy of Connected Coast)

It was a pivotal day for the Connected Coast project with the joint venture partner of Strathcona Regional District and CityWest, on behalf of their partners in the federal and provincial governments, announcing that the construction phase of the Connected Coast project has officially begun. 

The launch of the construction phase for the project was celebrated at an event in Campbell River, one of the future landing sites for the project. 

 

The $45.4 million Connected Coast project, funded by the federal and provincial governments, is co-managed by CityWest and the Strathcona Regional District. 

It is an undersea cable project that will bring high-speed Internet accessibility to 139 rural and remoted coastal communities, including 48 Indigenous communities – representing 44 First Nations – along the BC coast from north of Prince Rupert, to Haida Gwaii, south to Vancouver, and around Vancouver Island.

The milestone for the project today, was hailed by Stefan Woloszyn CEO of CityWest, the communication company which is owned by the City of Prince Rupert.

“This event is the culmination of hard work for everyone involved in the Connected Coast project, from our funders to the project managers to the permitting team. We’re thrilled that this project is officially launching, and we’re looking forward to seeing how this huge fibre-optic line will benefit the lives of the hundreds of thousands of people who live along its route.”

The partners outlined some of the path forward on the project from today for the initiative that was first announced in 2018.

The main contractor for the project, Baylink Networks, was announced in September 2020, and they quickly went to work procuring the necessary materials. 

CanPac Valour, the vessel that will be laying the undersea cable, is currently in Campbell River being outfitted for its long journey – she arrived in Canadian waters in mid-October.

The map of the Connected Coast project which reached another key point of
development with today's announcement towards construction
(From Connected Coast)

The subsea fibre cable will run over 3,400 kilometres along the coast of B.C., including a link to Haida Gwaii and all around Vancouver Island – one of the longest coastal subsea networks in the world. It will be laid in an environmentally-friendly manner on the ocean floor. 

The fibre itself, which is protected by steel-strength members and a tough outer sheath to ensure it’s not damaged, consists of glass strands about as thick as a strand of human hair. When it’s operational, hundreds of gigabits of data will stream through it every second.

More on the announcement, along with statements from other stakeholders in the project can be reviewed here.

Keep up to date on the project through their website here.

You can review some of the notes on the initiative going back to 2018, from our archive page here.

Items of interest related to CityWest can be explored here.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review.