Telecoms firm Sure has started its copper network switch-off in Guernsey this week.

Beginning yesterday (November 3), the telecoms firm has started its copper switch-off in Guernsey, a small island and British Crown dependency in the English Channel.

Sure, along with the State of Guernsey, has rolled out fiber technology in favor of the legacy copper network, which is being retired.

In an update, Guernsey Fibre, Sure’s fiber subsidiary, revealed that 67.7 percent of properties in Guernsey are now connected to fiber, while it adds that 93 percent of all homes can connect, “and should do so as soon as possible.”

The company added that its copper shutdown will continue into next year, carrying it out in stages.

According to the firm, the States of Guernsey has provided up to £12.5 million ($16.3m) of the total £37.5m ($48.97m) investment into the fiber rollout.

“The team has worked tremendously hard to deliver a world-class fiber network to the island on time and on budget, and we’re now on the home straight – which is fantastic for Guernsey’s connectivity and customers’ increasingly digital lives,” said Cyrille Joffre, chief operating officer, Sure Telecom.

The Channel Islands, which are located in the English Channel off the French coast of Normandy, have a population of more than 170,000 people.

Sure can trace its roots back more than 120 years. The international division of Cable & Wireless bought Guernsey Telecoms from the States of Guernsey in 2002, rebranding it as Sure in 2007 and expanding to other islands such as Jersey and the Isle of Man, the latter of which is located in the Irish Sea. The company was acquired by Batelco in April 2013.