Radio-Canada compiled the data relating to the financing of the Éclair I, II and III programs to proceed with the connection of the entire territory. In all, Quebec taxpayers alone invested $1.3 billion to connect just under 250,000 customers. Add to that more than $450 million invested by Ottawa.
To respect his commitment to a first term, Prime Minister Legault spared no effort. Examples abound of customers connected individually at high prices, with sums invested frequently exceeding $10,000 per residence and sometimes reaching $25,000 for a single customer.
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This is a godsend for several companies. Bell, for example, received $1 million for secure service to homes already served on the Magdalen Islands
. Along with Cogeco, Videotron and Telus, it is one of the companies that received the largest share of investments.
These players have also invested in the operation, but at levels well below those of the federal and provincial governments. For example, in the Bas-Saint-Laurent, the companies’ share was $3 million out of the $29 million needed to connect new customers.
Elon Musk as backup
According to our information, in addition to the major telecommunications companies present in Quebec, the promise of CAQ will benefit a well-known figure in international high finance: Elon Musk.
The Prime Minister’s parliamentary assistant, also responsible for the Internet file, Gilles Bélanger, should announce Monday at a press conference that the government is counting on the Starlink satellite constellation, a property of SpaceX, to complete the connection.
During the study of budgetary appropriations, he confirmed that 180,000 to 190,000 households are not yet served, but are about to be, at a rate of 30,000 connections per month.
This leaves 8,000 so-called households orphans
, whose connection would be far too expensive by traditional means, according to a source. But these customers will not be abandoned to their fate: Quebec should provide them with the equipment, including the dome, to connect to the satellite network of the new owner of Twitter.
The household should then assume at least part of the monthly subscription, so as to have access to an equivalent service, and at the same price, as that which it would receive in an urban environment.
Quebec at the forefront
During his announcement on Monday, Gilles Bélanger, MP for Orford, should also reveal an interactive map to allow Quebecers to measure the progress of the project.
It will therefore be possible to know where are the places where access to the high-speed network is still difficult and where are the last orphan homes.
Despite the huge investments and the work that remains to be done, Premier François Legault already sees in the operation a reason to celebrate.% connected in Quebec, while Ontario is at 88%, and Alberta at 87%.”,”text”:”It’s interesting to say that as we speak, we are 94% connected in Quebec, while Ontario is at 88%, and Alberta, at 87 %.”}}”>It’s interesting to say that as we speak, we are 94% connected in Quebec, while Ontario is 88%, and Alberta, 87%.
In parliamentary committee, he was pleased that Quebec has become a leader in high-speed connections in Canada.
A necessary investment
For the president of the Quebec Federation of Municipalities, Jacques Demers, there is no doubt that the game is worth the candle.
« Tell me at what price it would have been necessary to stop plugging? There was a time when there was electricity in Quebec; we didn’t stop because a farm was located two kilometers away. »
Not only is it a matter of fairness for him, in a Quebec that has decided to occupy its regions, but he points out that this connection will also have positive economic spinoffs.
With the collaboration of Hugo Lavallée
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