ACCC, Telstra deal delay would concern

The chief of NBN Co says he would be concerned if the competition watchdog and Telstra were unable to reach agreement on structural separation.

The chief of the company set up to build the federal government's National Broadband Network (NBN) says he would be concerned if the competition watchdog and Telstra were unable to agree on structural separation undertakings by December 20.

"Of course, it would cause some concern" if Telstra and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) failed to agree on the undertakings, NBN Co chief executive Mike Quigley said on Monday.

The ACCC is reviewing Telstra's undertakings and said in August that it could not accept a crucial aspect, saying the telco had no compliance plan for its commitment to structurally separate its two arms from 2018.

However, Telstra chairman Catherine Livingstone said last week at the telco's annual general meeting that Telstra was in ongoing, productive negotiations with the ACCC.

Additionally, outgoing Telstra chief financial officer John Stanhope said the company would submit a revised undertaking in the coming weeks.

Quigley said at a Federal Parliament Joint Committee on the National Broadband Network public hearing that NBN Co was working under an interim agreement.

"I'm keen to get a deal done so we can get on with it and have some surety," he said.

"That interim agreement is not the final agreement.

"There are certain restrictions on it so we are not able to do all the things we would like to do."

The Joint Committee on the NBN is holding a six monthly review of the rollout of the NBN with a public hearing in Sydney scheduled to go all day on Monday.

The Productivity Commission, Optus and Vodafone Hutchison are also due to appear.

More about: ACCC, Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, etwork, Hutchison, Optus, Productivity Commission, Quigley, Telstra, Vodafone

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Tags: Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), Mike Quigley, National Broadband Network (NBN), NBN, nbn co, structural separation, telcos, Telstra
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