Ventia's telecommunications business has been awarded a major contract by Chorus New Zealand to continue connecting Kiwis to ultrafast broadband.

The contract will see Ventia maintain its role as one of Chorus' main delivery partners for new fibre connections through to 2022.

Ventia has worked closely with Chorus to connect hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders to ultrafast broadband since 2011. The agreement announced today will see this work continue when Visionstream's current contract to support the project expires later this year. 

"We have forged a close partnership with Chorus over the past decade and we are delighted to continue the journey," said Jim Tocher, General Manager Visionstream NZ. 

"Chorus' ultrafast broadband rollout has made fibre available to the vast majority of New Zealand homes, schools and businesses. The next phase of our work will aim to ensure that every New Zealander with fibre available in their street has the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of highspeed internet and to be connected quickly."

Andrew Carroll, Chorus' GM Customer & Network Operations said, 'Now more than ever, Chorus has a critical role to play in getting New Zealanders connected to the best possible broadband.

We're pleased to be extending our close relationship with Visionstream for the next 18 months, so they can continue their valuable work in connecting homes and businesses across the country to our fibre network.  They have played a significant role in connecting the majority of the 800,000 plus premises to fibre since the Ultra-Fast Broadband roll-out started.'

The new UFB Connect Services agreement complements other work Visionstream undertakes for Chorus. This includes maintenance and provisioning on New Zealand's copper network and support for Chorus' work extending the national ultrafast broadband network to small towns and rural communities.

Ventia continues to work with Chorus to educate, support and monitor subcontractors and their employees within the supply chain, with the aim of ensuring worker rights are protected by everyone.