NBN Co and Nokia say they have tested new fibre technology called NG-PON2 that could deliver symmetrical speeds of 10Gbps to premises where fibre to the premises is installed.

The Australian company responsible for the broadband rollout claimed future NG-PON2 deployments could also benefit FttB and FttDP users through technologies such as G.fast or XG.FAST.

It could also provide extra capacity for the NBN Co's fixed wireless and HFC networks, the company claimed.

Trials in Melbourne achieved aggregate downstream/upstream speeds of 102Gbps in lab conditions.

This was generated from 40Gbps symmetrical speeds on Time and Wavelength Division Multiplexing (TWDM-PON) technology, 10Gbps symmetrical on XGS-PON and a further 2.5Gbps on NBN Co's current Gigabit Passive Optical Network (GPON) technology.

In the current rollout, the NBN Co is offering speeds of 1Gbps to retailers who are only offering a maximum of 100/40 Mbps to end users.

NBN Co chief technology officer Dennis Steiger said: "Our successful trials of NG-PON2 technology with Nokia is another example of our ongoing commitment to continually develop the capabilities and speed of the NBN Co network.

“With more than two million homes now receiving services from their chosen retailer over the NBN Co network and nearly five million able to order a retail service, the rollout is continuing at pace while we also have a very sharp focus on the future.

"The NG-PON2 trials we have conducted with Nokia have shown us the huge potential this very exciting technology has in terms of helping us deliver on future consumer demand for data at speed."

Ray Owen, head of Oceania at Nokia, said: "NBN Co is a valued and long-term customer, and we are committed to bringing our latest innovations to them and the country of Australia.

"The trial of our universal NG-PON solution reflects that commitment, and demonstrates how we can help evolve NBN Co's network now and in the long term to meet the increasing data demand of subscribers across the country."