Saskatchewan Crown Collaboration Report 2020-21

SHARED INFRASTRUCTURE

When it comes to the delivery of large-scale programs like SaskTel’s FTTx program, joint use agreements help SaskTel build out its fibre network. SaskTel has agreements in place with SaskPower for both its aerial and buried fibre programs. In the case of aerial delivery where SaskTel utilizes SaskPower poles to place its facilities, the SaskPower aerial agreement governs the terms and conditions of the telecommunication wired attachments on SaskPower’s urban distribution poles. Guided by this agreement, the two Crown corporation work collaboratively to ensure that SaskPower’s distribution poles have sufficient structural capacity. SaskPower upgrades the poles to a higher class where required to ensure they can withstand the additional fiber while also reliably supporting its own electrical infrastructure. The poles are upgraded through cost sharing with SaskTel. “This agreement has effectively helped us to expand our infiNET service to more communities in our province,” says Tim Ludwar, Director – FTTP (Operations). “Because of the volume of work SaskTel does, we are able to get better pricing on some of the infrastructure work required to deliver infiNET so both SaskTel and SaskPower can take advantage of volume costs.” The agreement has also helped SaskTel deliver infiNET over aerial in communities beyond the nine major centers initially announced at the start of the infiNET program. With the agreement in place, SaskTel has worked with SaskPower to help in the delivery of fibre over aerial in Melfort, Tisdale, Nipawin, Humboldt, and Melville. Also, SaskTel is able to extend its infiNET services to an additional 20 rural communities as announced last December as part of its rural fibre initiative.

The agreement creates an advantageous scenario when compared to one in which SaskTel would have to install their own poles, which would require gaining easement from cities and towns and procuring contractors and materials. “This would take significant effort let alone having two pole structures would not be very palatable for cities, towns or our customers,” said Tim. “In many cases, we already rent space on the poles where we need to get to so we would be ‘doubling down’ on pole structures plus then having to maintain our poles for years to come.” With the buried fibre program, SaskPower, SaskTel, and their customers all benefit from the delivery of FTTx program by SaskTel. Working collaboratively, SaskTel uses a boring process to lay fibre for its infiNET program underground. SaskPower uses the same underground path to lay its buried infrastructure. The joint delivery of service subsidizes the cost of the boring. Other benefits realized from this collaboration include a reduction of customer and environmental impacts by mitigating at risk aging infrastructure such as cable, pedestals, and transformers, reducing customer outages and disruption. “The result is communities are getting new infrastructure like infiNET and SaskPower services through all of this collaboration. It gives SaskPower ability to serve their customers better as we are putting fibre in for our customers,” said Tim. “From a customer perspective, it’s very good.”

Grain storage silos

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