Vodafone teams up with Canadians for broadband bid

Vodafone has formed an alliance with Canadian company Axia to bid for the Government's planned ultra-fast broadband project.

The Government is spending $1.5 billion on the ultra-fast broadband network.

Vodafone chief executive Russell Stanners said the alliance with Axia would enable Vodafone to not only take part in the ultrafast broadband project as a retail provider, but also help invest in the future of New Zealand.

National Business Review reported that if Axia and Vodafone were successful bidders a new company would be created to build network assets and Vodafone would take a stake in this company. By partnering with Vodafone Axia would not be able to present itself as a pure play network wholesaler.

Vodafone has also been reported to be talking to Vector, which is expected to bid for the Auckland network, and to other parties.

Stanners said mobile companies were one of the biggest users of fibre in the world because they needed to connect cellsites together.

Axia had built similar next-generation networks in Canada, France and Singapore and worked to a very successful model. It did not compete with its own customers.

Axia chief executive Art Price said his company wanted to help New Zealanders to achieve the optimal ultrafast broadband outcome.

"The Government of New Zealand has set a policy framework that can achieve the desired outcomes," he said.

Axia, which traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol AXX, provides the Alberta SuperNet for the Alberta government and has submitted a bid to build Australia's National Broadband Network. The company is due to report its third quarter result after the market closes on May 10 Canadian time.

It has a market capitalisation of about $C101 million ($136m).

- NZPA