A new rural broadband project in western Saskatchewan has moved from funding approval toward implementation.

On October 9, 2026, the CRTC approved the statement of work for a fibre transport project led by Access Communications Co-operative Limited.

The project has previously been awarded up to $12,889,966 from the CRTC Broadband Fund and is designed to bring higher-capacity fibre transport infrastructure to 25 eligible communities.

There is one important distinction for residents: this is primarily a transport-fibre project. Approval does not mean every household in the affected region will immediately receive a fibre-optic cable directly to the home.

What did the CRTC approve?

The CRTC’s Telecom Order 2026-264 approves the project’s finalized statement of work.

The original funding award was approved in 2025.

Access Communications subsequently submitted the detailed implementation plan required before funding could continue to flow.

The October decision confirms that the project plan is consistent with the earlier approved application.

How much funding is involved?

The CRTC previously awarded up to $12.89 million for the project.

The money comes through the Broadband Fund.

The fund is financed through contributions from large telecommunications service providers operating in Canada rather than being a direct monthly household subsidy.

The CRTC uses the fund to support projects that may not be commercially viable without financial assistance.

What is transport fibre?

Internet networks have several layers.

The connection inside a home is only the final part of a much larger system.

Transport fibre is high-capacity infrastructure that carries large volumes of data between communities and major telecommunications networks.

Think of it as a highway for internet traffic.

A stronger transport connection can make it possible for local providers to expand or improve the last-mile service that eventually reaches homes, businesses and community facilities.

Does this mean fibre-to-the-home for all 25 communities?

No.

The CRTC order specifically describes the project as a transport fibre project.

It would therefore be misleading to say that every household will automatically receive a new fibre-to-the-home connection.

Better backbone infrastructure can improve the economics and capacity of local internet service, but additional access-network construction may still be required before an individual property receives fibre directly.

Why transport capacity matters in rural areas

A community can have an internet provider and still experience limited service because the network connecting that community to the wider internet does not have enough capacity.

Transport bottlenecks can affect:

• available internet speeds
• network reliability
• the ability of providers to add customers
• remote work and online education
• business use of cloud services

Expanding fibre transport can therefore improve more than a single household connection.

Who is building the project?

Access Communications is a Saskatchewan-based, community-owned co-operative.

The CRTC says the organization reinvests its earnings into more than 200 urban and rural Saskatchewan communities.

The project also received letters of support from community representatives, including the Chief of Thunderchild First Nation.

The CRTC cited potential improvements for remote work, learning and commercial activity as reasons communities supported better connectivity.

When will the project be finished?

The approved project completion date is December 2028.

That means residents should not interpret the October 2026 order as an announcement that new service becomes available immediately.

Access Communications must also submit progress and expense reports while construction continues.

The CRTC says quarterly progress reporting must begin no later than January 25, 2027 unless another schedule is approved.

Funding will be released as the project progresses

The entire funding amount is not simply paid upfront without conditions.

The CRTC reviews eligible project expenses and can release funding as work proceeds.

For this particular project, the Commission approved some exceptional flexibility allowing Access Communications to submit claims as frequently as monthly.

The CRTC also allowed reimbursement based on eligible costs incurred rather than requiring all costs to have already been paid.

The Commission said this would help the non-profit co-operative manage cash flow during construction.

The project still has conditions

The CRTC requires recipients to comply with funding conditions throughout implementation.

If the project does not meet those requirements, funding can be delayed or withheld.

Access Communications must also submit a final implementation report after construction is finished and broadband services are being offered.

The regulator will use that report to verify completion.

Indigenous consultation remains part of the process

The approved route passes lands near First Nations communities.

The CRTC order specifically notes that if a potential adverse impact on an Aboriginal or treaty right becomes known and a duty to consult exists, the recipient must notify the Commission and submit a consultation plan.

Additional funding can depend on the Commission being satisfied that necessary consultation has occurred.

What speed is Canada trying to achieve?

The CRTC’s broader universal service objective is for Canadians to have access to fixed internet speeds of at least 50 Mbps download and 10 Mbps upload, along with an unlimited-data option.

The regulator is using its Broadband Fund as one of several tools aimed at closing connectivity gaps in rural, remote and Indigenous communities.

The latest Broadband Fund application framework continues to use 50/10 Mbps as a central benchmark. :chatgpt-content-reference{index=”3″}

Rural coverage is different from cellphone coverage

Fixed home internet availability and mobile network coverage are related but separate problems.

A community can have good home broadband and weak cellphone coverage, or the reverse.

The CRTC recently introduced a new standardized approach for how Canadian mobile carriers report cellphone coverage.

Maple Curiosity’s Canada Cellphone Coverage Maps 2026 explains how that change is intended to make coverage information more comparable.

Device compatibility is another separate issue

Even where a strong network exists, some imported phones can still have problems using features such as VoLTE or Wi-Fi calling.

That issue is covered in Maple Curiosity’s Imported Phone Compatibility guide.

The CRTC is also reviewing issues surrounding device unlocking, discussed in Maple Curiosity’s Canadian Cellphone Locking Rules.

What should residents expect next?

For residents of the affected Saskatchewan communities, the October decision is an infrastructure milestone rather than a service-launch date.

The next stages involve construction, progress reporting and eventually confirmation that the new network is operating.

The most useful question for an individual household will eventually be whether a local provider uses the new transport capacity to offer faster or more reliable last-mile service at that address.

Until then, the $12.9 million project should be understood as part of the network foundation required to improve rural connectivity, not as an instant fibre connection for every home.