The Queensland government has unveiled a $250 million investment in its Queensland Capacity Network (QCN), a fiber backhaul system designed to support electricity distribution networks. The QCN, already boasting 13,000 km of fiber, including 2,000 km of access to Queensland Rail’s fiber network, is set to receive this additional funding.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced this investment during her State of the State 2023 address. This initiative will run parallel to the state’s SuperGrid CopperString 2023 project, which extends electricity transmission from Townsville to a planned renewable energy zone in Hughenden, approximately 400 km to the southwest, and on to Mount Isa.
The electrical distribution network will operate at 500kV from south of Townsville to Hughenden, 330kV from Hughenden to Cloncurry, and 220kV from Cloncurry to Mount Isa.
Palaszczuk stated that this investment would establish “the largest publicly owned regional fiber network in the nation.” It will support data centers near renewable energy hubs and enable connections essential for “advanced manufacturing jobs in regional centers.”
Palaszczuk also noted that QCN and Powerlink would commence early work on the Copperstring 2032 section of the Supergrid, laying the groundwork for communication infrastructure as part of the Copperstring construction rollout. This rollout will provide high-speed backhaul connectivity to communities along the Flinders Highway.
