Thirty manufacturing jobs will be created in Wellington by Sweden's Ericsson.

The company is converting a former Mitsubishi car plant at Todd Park in Porirua to make plastic ducting for the ultrafast broadband (UFB) and rural broadband (RBI) networks.

Ericsson said it was investing $15 million in the 10,000 square metre facility.

The company said it would be only its second such facility when it opened in the second half of the year. The first is in Sweden.

Once the UFB roll-out is completed in 2019 it could be used to export ducting to Australia and elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific, it said.

Ericsson said the jobs would be a mixture of production and "production development" roles.

"Locating the facility in New Zealand means that our delivery timelines will be significantly reduced, we will reduce the environmental impact of the shipping process and have the opportunity to utilise local skills in production and product development," Ericsson Cables vice president Magnus Kreuger said.

The ducting will be used by Chorus, which is building 70 per cent of the UFB network and laying more fibre to rural areas as part of its commitments under the RBI. 

- © Fairfax NZ News

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