FTTH construction in the south area has been halted for winter. During the 2023 build season we placed 105 miles of Belfield fiber and drops to 71 locations. These 71 locations will be ready for service turn up in mid-January. Construction will resume in the south area as soon as the ground thaws in Spring 2024.
We continue to work on easements for the north build area and are making good headway. The chart shows our progress. We have reroutes for all the no’s identified so the project is still on track for construction in 2024.
Agreeing to take a fiber drop to your home does not mean you have to take service and there is no cost to you. We hope that you take service, that is the whole point of the project. Even if you do not want service today we would encourage you to take the fiber drop for future service needs while the construction crews are placing them and there are funds to pay for the construction. If you are interested in service, please visit our online application
Bill Palanuk interviews Scott Bachmeier about the Rural Belfield Fiber Construction Project and the importance of this project to the future generations in North Dakota.
CEO/General Manager, Bryan Personne, and Bill Palanuk talk about the Belfield Fiber Optic Project and what needs to happen to keep this time sensitive project on track.
Belfield Rural Fiber Project town meeting with CEO/GM Bryan Personne March 27, 2023.
The Belfield Rural Fiber Project town meeting with CEO/GM Bryan Personne March 23, 2023.
Construction is planned to start this Spring and that is just a few months away. Without the cooperation of landowners giving easements the project will not happen. When you receive your easement packet, it is imperative to contact Contex Energy or Consolidated immediately if you have questions otherwise execute and return ASAP to keep this time sensitive project on track. Construction season in North Dakota is limited and we can’t start until we have easements.
Consolidated is a company of family, friends and neighbors serving family, friends and neighbors. That comes from our cooperative roots. Help us bring fiber and the benefits of high speed Internet to your area.
When bringing fiber to the home, we run the drop from the road to the side of your house and install the equipment to provide your service. There is no cost to you in this project. Once the fiber is installed if you choose to take service you will pay for whatever services you take. There is no obligation to take service by signing an easement or allowing us to place a fiber line to your home or business.
When the county right-of-way is used, we are still required to get easement from the land owner and a permit from the county to be in their right of way. We will use some county right-of-way, but we want to be as far away from the road as possible so we are not in the way if roadwork needs to be done. The grant requires that all main line fiber has to be placed in previously disturbed ground.
Yes, utility companies can use the fiber network to have remote access to reset, turn off, and monitor power to specific locations to provide faster response to outages, fire, etc. in your area.
Engineering and Easement/Permit acquisitions began Fall 2022.
Construction will begin in Spring of 2023. Initial construction will start South of I94 and after completed will proceed North of I94.
There are multiple phases of construction: Mainline routes, individual drops to locations, splicing and testing, and then installation and turn up of services.
This is a 2 year project to complete the entire serving area covered by the award.
Installation of services in the South areas will begin in the Fall of 2023.
This project is being 100% funded by a $13.8M grant from USDA and a $4.6M match from Consolidated. Once complete, services will be offered to residences and businesses at the same rates we charge in our other service areas. Programs like Lifeline and ACP will also be available to qualifying customers.
Once the fiber-to-the-home project is complete, we will offer up to 1G symmetrical broadband service, voice service, and video service. We are a local company with local technicians and staff available for you.
We are starting South of 94 because there are fewer pipeline crossings. Pipeline crossings take more lead time. The bulk of these are in the North half and this will give us the needed time to get those crossings planned and not slow construction down.
The fiber optic facilities require backup battery power to allow your telephone service to continue functioning in a power outage. To avoid a disruption in home voice service during a power outage, and to maintain the ability to connect to 911 emergency services, Consolidated provides you with a battery for the backup power for you residential voice telephone service at the time of the installation at no additional cost. The only service that the backup battery will support is voice. Home security systems, medical monitoring devices, and other equipment will not run on residential voice telephone backup battery. The backup batteries are expected to last up to 8 hours, depending on usage.
No, the existing wire will work in most cases.
PO Box 1408
507 South Main
Dickinson ND 58601
