NBN Co. seems to have raced ahead of the Federal Government's vision of a super-fast broadband connection for Australia, by going to market equipped with a latest tender for new network equipment.

As per the new tender, the company has sent out invitations to fiber-optic equipment manufacturers to register their interest is supplying the large amounts of cables and connections that would be required to effectively run the new network along the thousands of kilometers, in order to reach out to 90% of the nation's population.

The request for proposals is reportedly concerned with the so-called "passive" parts of the network, which would act as the link between equipment at premises and exchanges, commonly designated as the "active" parts of a network.

Potential suppliers have been notified that they have a deadline of March 22 to register their interest in ads placed across the national media today.

The acceptance of the registrations commenced yesterday.