Australian PM promises to finish broadband network with major upgrade

CANBERRA -- Australia's Prime Minister has promised a funding injection to "finish" the country's National Broadband Network (NBN) and boost internet speeds.

Anthony Albanese on Monday promised a three billion Australian dollar ($1.84 billion) equity injection in the NBN to improve access to fiber internet connections.

He said the additional funding would deliver new fiber connections to 622,000 premises, with over half in regional rural areas.

When the upgrade is completed by 2030, Albanese said that over 11 million homes and businesses will have access to internet speeds exceeding one gigabit per second (Gbps) compared to the current average NBN speed of 76.64 megabits per second (Mbps).

"Families and businesses deserve high-speed Internet at an affordable price," Albanese said at a press conference in Canberra alongside Ellie Sweeney, chief executive of the state-owned NBN Co, and Communications Minister Michelle Rowland.

According to News Corp Australia newspapers, the additional funding would take the total government investment in the NBN since its launch in 2008 to over 35 billion AUD ($21.5 billion).

Sweeney described the new project as the "final piece of the puzzle" for the network.

Modelling commissioned by the government found that the upgrade could deliver a 10.4 billion AUD ($6.39 billion) cumulative economic uplift over the next decade.

Earlier on Monday, Albanese met with his Cabinet for the first time in 2025.

In opening remarks to the meeting released by his office, Albanese said he is focused on putting forward a positive and optimistic vision for Australia ahead of the general election, which must be held by May.