The Federal Communications Minister and Prime Minister are reportedly considering a Labor government model for the National Broadband Network roll-out, based on suggestions from the Tasmanian Premier.

Labor premier Lara Giddings has pitched the state’s plan for an NBN roll-out that would see overhead cables used to save money in installation.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull will consider the plan, with a possible view to adopting it as part of the nation-wide installation, according to reports in a News Ltd publication.

A detailed proposal was prepared by Tasmanian government-owned Aurora Energy which contains the idea to use the company’s existing power poles as hosts for the optical cables. The overheard plan would provide a fibre-to-the-premises connection in most instances, also side-stepping the asbestos-laden pits which currently house some phone infrastructure.

The plan could end months of turmoil for the introduction of the NBN to Tasmania, which has been plagued by health, contractor, union, and governmental problems.

The overhead plan was considered by NBN Co during its planning phase, but was skipped-over in favour of the trench-style installation that Telstra was familiar with.

Ms Giddings said she believed the proposal, under which Aurora would provide access to its network, but not necessarily conduct the work itself, was a potential solution for all concerned. "This has the potential to be a win-win for all of us, allowing the Coalition to honour its pre-election pledge, reducing rollout costs for NBN Co and its contractors and ensuring that Tasmania continues to realise the benefits of having super-fast broadband delivered to the door," the Premier said.

"I am deeply concerned that Tasmania's first-mover advantage and the jobs and investment of the new digital economy could be lost under the Coalition's second-rate fibre-to-the-node plan. That is why I have asked Aurora to prepare a brief on using its existing power pole network to deliver optic fibre, which we will provide to the Australian government. This technique has the potential to ensure that the NBN can continue to be rolled out in a cheaper and more efficient way."

She said the federal ministers indicated they were "open to receiving a proposal".

A key question will of course be cost. Early reports say previous estimates had the roll-out to pilot sites costing around $4000 to $5000 per premises passed. It is possible the overhead plan could be completed for closer to $1000 per site.