OREANDA-NEWS. IDGC of Centre has started implementing the federal project "Bridging the Digital Divide", whose goal is to provide high-speed access to data networks (Internet, television, telephony) in small towns with a population of 250 to 500 people. Work is being performed within the framework of the agreement signed by JSC "Russian Grids" and JSC "Rostelecom", which provides for installation of fiber-of optic communication lines (FOCL) on overhead power lines to arrange data transfer.

According to plans, by the end of 2014 IDGC of Centre will provide access to high-speed (at least 10 Mbit/s) data transfer in 74 municipalities in six regions of the Central Federal District within the service area of the company - the Belgorod, Bryansk, Voronezh, Kursk, Lipetsk, and Orel regions. The power engineers together with the staff of contractors of Rostelecom have already performed project examination in these regions, they have also defined routes of overhead lines of 10 kV and 35 kV for the arrangement of the fiber optic links suspension. Currently the work is in the design stage. In 2015 the project will cover another 384 settlements. IDGC of Centre plans to provide access to high-speed data networks of all residents of small communities in the regions of its service area for five years.

The implementation of the project "Bridging the Digital Divide" will create communications infrastructure of a new generation in the CF subjects: high-speed Internet will come to institutions of education, culture, social sphere, located in small towns. In turn, power facilities of IDGC of Centre will receive additional channels of communication, which ultimately will improve the reliability of the company's own communications networks and power system as a whole.