GCI crews prepare for fiber network buildouts in Chignik Bay, Larsen Bay
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — With three Aleutians Fiber Project communities online and a fourth expected this summer, GCI crews will soon ramp up work in Chignik Bay and Larsen Bay as the company looks to wrap up the project’s first phase. Once complete, GCI’s Aleutians Fiber Project will deliver 2.5 gig internet speeds, unlimited data and urban pricing to a dozen communities in the region.
Before construction begins in the two communities, the GCI project team is working through the final planning and logistical challenges that come with working in remote Alaska.
“Working in very small communities accessible only by boat or airplane adds a level of complexity to network buildouts that you don’t experience in larger urban areas,” said GCI Project Manager Jerry Walker. “With a combined population of around 115 residents, options for lodging in Chignik Bay and Larsen Bay are limited and you can’t just drive to the store for a forgotten piece of material. Everything must be planned ahead. We have to ensure our crews have a place to stay for extended periods of time and every piece of equipment and hardware makes it to the jobsite. We buy locally when we can, but we do our best to be as self-sufficient as possible, so we don’t strain the resources of the communities hosting our crews.”
Chignik Bay and Larsen Bay will be the fifth and sixth communities connected through GCI’s Aleutians Fiber Project. GCI has launched urban-level internet speeds, plans, and pricing in Unalaska, Sand Point and King Cove, and expects to launch the service in Akutan this summer.
As the project’s first phase approaches completion, survey work and planning efforts are underway for phase two, which will bring fiber-optic connectivity to six more communities.
“We conducted our first phase two surveys last fall, collecting information for the future construction of cable landing stations in Chignik Lagoon, Chignik Lake, Cold Bay, False Pass, Ouzinkie and Port Lions,” said GCI Principal Program Manager Rebecca Markley. “We’ll continue those efforts in 2024, assessing local infrastructure and developing our plans for local network buildouts as we work to close the digital divide and bring digital equity to each community.”
The first phase of the $100 million project is partially funded by a $25 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development’s ReConnect Program. It includes an 800-mile-long subsea fiber-optic backbone, deployed in 2022, and the delivery of high-speed internet to Unalaska, King Cove, Sand Point, Akutan, Chignik Bay and Larsen Bay.
The second phase of the project leverages the 800-mile subsea fiber to deliver service to six more communities in the region. The Native Village of Port Lions, in partnership with GCI, was awarded a $29.3 million grant from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to bring connectivity to Chignik Lagoon, Chignik Lake, Cold Bay, False Pass, Ouzinkie and Port Lions in the coming years.
For more information on GCI’s Aleutians Fiber Project, visit https://www.gci.com/aleutianfiberproject.
About GCI
Headquartered in Alaska, GCI provides data, mobile, video, voice and managed services to consumer, business, government, and carrier customers throughout Alaska, serving more than 200 communities. The company has invested more than $4 billion in its Alaska network and facilities over the past 40 years and recently launched true standards-based 5G NR service in Anchorage, now the nation’s northernmost 5G service area. Learn more about GCI at www.gci.com. GCI is a wholly owned subsidiary of Liberty Broadband Corporation (Nasdaq: LBRDA, LBRDK, LBRDP). Learn more about Liberty Broadband at http://www.libertybroadband.com.