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NZ region future rides on Chinese provided system

Updated: 2012-03-20 16:16

(Xinhua)

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WELLINGTON -- The ultra-fast broadband (UFB) network being installed with the help of a Chinese telecommunications giant will make earthquake-battered Canterbury the most "technologically advanced" region in New Zealand, according to a government minister.

The government's UFB initiative presented a unique opportunity for Canterbury as it started to rebuild, Communications and Information Technology Minister Amy Adams said.

The UFB would help give the region an opportunity to shape its own future in rebuilding, she told a gathering in Christchurch, according to a statement from her office.

"We have a unique opportunity to position Canterbury as New Zealand's most technologically-advanced region, and the government 's NZ$1.35 billion ($1.11 billion) UFB initiative is at the heart of this," said Adams.

"The people of Canterbury are hungry for innovation and new approaches in a way that I've never seen before. I'm in no doubt that the rollout of UFB will be seized by Cantabrians in a way that would have been impossible to imagine just a few years ago.

"Canterbury has always been a leader in taking advantage of new technological opportunities, and local stakeholders have the opportunity to take the lead in building a plan to leverage the UFB infrastructure.

"In Canterbury, the UFB will allow the creation of new businesses and also allow existing businesses to grow in ways they may have never thought possible.

"Businesses will be better able to expand and compete globally through greater access to research and development and investment, and greater ability to work with customers, suppliers, and partners in real time."

It was broadly accepted in New Zealand and internationally that the UFB was critical for economic growth, Adams said.

A study last year by McKinsey and Co found the Internet accounted for 21 percent of GDP growth in the last five years in mature countries, she said.

Last month, Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei secured a second major contract in the UFB scheme, when Enable Networks, owned by the Christchurch city council, announced that Huawei New Zealand would supply the fiber equipment for the city's UFB network, and for services to manage operations and maintenance.

The "multi-million-dollar contract" covered the provision of all network equipment, including fiber ducting, fiber optic cables and open access layer two, or "bitstream," network solutions.

Huawei would also provide the service expertise for the 3,500- km UFB network across New Zealand's second city of Christchurch and neighboring Waimakariri and Selwyn districts.

Huawei also won a similar contract late last year to build the UFB network in the Hamilton-Central North Island region and supply the optical equipment, including micro tube ducting and optical fiber cables, as well as open access Ethernet network solutions.