National Broadband Network off to a slow start as search for board heats up

The Government has begun the process of choosing a board for the National Broadband Network, but it already appears to be falling behind on plans for the $43 billion infrastructure project.

It is now understood that former Optus chief executive Chris Anderson, and former Optus and Telstra chief Ziggy Switkowski, are both on a shortlist of candidates that has been handed to the Government by executive search firm Egon Zehnder.

Anderson has previously been chief executive of Fairfax Media, a senior executive of the ABC and chief executive of Optus between 1997 and 2004. Switkowski has previously been head of the Australian Nuclear Science & Technology Organisation.

Additionally, while Telstra Countrywide chief executive Doug Campbell is rumoured to have ruled himself out for the chairman’s role, he may still be considered for a board position.

Possible candidates for the chief executive role include Paul Twomey, former head of domain name regulator the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names & Numbers. Additionally, former Optus senior executive Chris Hancock has been rumoured to be a candidate.

While the personnel hunt goes on, Opposition communications spokesman Nick Minchin has claimed the roll-out of NBN infrastructure in Tasmania is unlikely to begin this month as initially scheduled.

“The Rudd Government is hiding behind an implementation study, which is more than likely a delaying tactic to get it through the next election, while disadvantaged parts of the country are still waiting for the enhanced broadband services that the Coalition would have delivered this year had Labor not cancelled the OPEL project,” Minchin said.

“We don’t even know how much this project will cost or even what the governance arrangements will be. Vendors are also rightly expecting a tender for the supply of equipment and services to support the roll out, yet have been kept in the dark.”

But there is one piece of good news in relation to the NBN – analysis from Citi Investment Research shows the network could cost $30 billion, down from the Government’s original estimate of $43 million.