Wollongong will become the largest regional centre to be connected to the National Broadband Network (NBN), Prime Minister Julia Gillard has announced.
It will also be part of the first major metropolitan area to be wired with fibre optic cable.
Ms Gillard was in Wollongong, on the NSW south coast, on Tuesday to announce the next rollout of the NBN in the Wollongong and Dapto areas.
Construction of the NBN will provide about 500 jobs in the Illawarra as the area "moves beyond the job losses to looking at the economic future", Ms Gillard said.
Wollongong is home to BlueScope Steel which is shedding 1000 jobs, mainly at its Port Kembla plant.
"The NBN will play a big role in that economic future, including new productivity to businesses who are here today and it will enable the creation of new businesses too," Ms Gillard told reporters.
The construction of the NBN would provide about 500 jobs at its peak, she added.
"So that is welcome news I believe for the region as people are thinking what are the job opportunities here following BlueScope's announcement," Ms Gillard said.
The NBN was switched on in the nearby communities of Kiama Downs and Minnamurra in July, and will now be extended north to Dapto and Wollongong.
The $36 billion NBN is expected to cover 93 per cent of homes, schools, hospitals and workplaces and to be complete by 2020.
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