News / Fibre optic plans go ahead
SHETLAND Islands Council is pushing ahead with its plans to hook up to a fibre optic communications cable, rejecting an alternative offer from UK telecoms giant BT.
However after a week of negotiations the council and BT have agreed to work together on a long term strategy to improve broadband throughout the islands.
Last year the SIC agreed to spend £1 million creating an arms length organisation called Shetland Telecom to improve the islands’ broadband connections.
The initial plan is to link Lerwick and Scalloway to the SHEFA2 fibre optic cable that connects Faroe to the UK mainland via Shetland’s south mainland and then roll out connections elsewhere.
This week BT visited the islands to offer an alternative approach to connecting into the cable, but their offer was rejected by councillors at a private meeting of the SIC’s development committee on Thursday.
Instead the SIC and BT have agreed to develop a “long term strategy” to improve broadband connections throughout the isles, including remote rural communities and outlying islands.
Development committee chairman Josie Simpson said the meeting had to be held in private as “sensitive commercial issues” were discussed, but councillors were united in their desire for Shetland to own it’s own fibre optic infrastructure.
“Given all the facts, we felt that this represented the best option and would deliver the best result for Shetland at the end of the day,” Mr Simpson said.
The council has not always seen eye to eye with BT over improving communications on the isles. For example in March this year BT offered to provide 8Mb broadband in Vidlin, shortly after the SIC had already invested tens of thousands of pounds in a similar project in the area.
However meetings this week have been far more convivial, according to development committee vice chairman Alastair Cooper.
“The meetings we have had with BT in the last few days have been the most encouraging and positive discussions we have had to date on the issue of broadband on the islands,” Mr Cooper said.
“We very much hope that this heralds a new era and a shared vision for ensuring that Shetland is at the forefront of telecommunications in the UK. The council’s decision to invest in a fibre optic network is bold and the first step towards delivering that.”
SIC head of economic development Neil Grant said they had already managed to “lever in” £400,000 from Europe to fund the fibre optic link, which he believed “will do a lot of good for business and communities right across Shetland”.
He added: “We would like to emphasise the fact that we are keen to work together with BT as the project goes forward and can see no reason why, if that happens, we both can’t manage to achieve satisfactory outcomes.”
A spokesman for BT said: “BT welcomed the opportunity over two days to discuss some ideas, in detail, for creating some significant joint investment on Shetland, subject to a competitive tender process with state aid approval. We are keen to continue the dialogue towards that end.
“However, and in the spirit of creating a joint strategy, we are unconvinced that a decision to undertake separate investment is in the best interests of Shetland’s citizens, businesses and other organisations.
“At a time of financial constraint for every organisation it would seem prudent to seek the greatest possible public/private sector impact with every pound available.
“BT’s proposals would see significant investment from the private sector, through match funding, in the delivery of a competitor-ready network that would bring more competition and choice to citizens and businesses on Shetland. This would offer the greatest impact possible for the long term.”
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