The locations impacted will include Bayindeen, Buangor, Crowlands, Dunneworthy, Landsborough, Langi Logan, Moonambel, Mount Cole Creek, Nerrin Nerrin and Rossbridge.

Ararat Rural City Mayor Cr Paul Hooper welcomed the announcement for the program which will affect some of the more remote parts of the region.

Cr Hooper said Ararat Rural City had been working towards this project through the Central Highlands Council Group, with locations targeted as a priority in the region being Dereel, Blackwood and Moonambel, however, he was thrilled to see so many remote locations in the Ararat region also included.

"We've been working and advocating that this program needs further resources committed to it in the longer term. We understand we're not going to solve all the problems overnight," Cr Hooper said.

"To see all these others is fantastic but I'd caution it needs a lot more resources put it into and we need to be patient because it's going to take a long long time."

Cr Hooper said mobile data and phone coverage is an essential part of daily life, indicating that as well as safety and communication it was just as important for health and education services.

"From a safety point of view all our messaging is by mobile, well that's no good if you're in a blackspot area, is it?" he said.

"We're more and more reliant on this technology so it's definitely been an inhibitor for business growth, for tourism, for commerce for safety, communications and health is a big one. In really connected places, specialists are able, via video link, to deal with issues hundreds of miles away from where they're actually sitting. From a health services issue point of view it's important as well," he said.

"Farmers working by themselves on heavy equipment, what happens if there's an accident and they need a mobile?

Member for Wannon Dan Tehan said the announcement of these locations as part of the program was great for Wannon.

"This is a great outcome for Wannon with a total of $10.41 million to be invested on new or improved mobile coverage in the area," said Mr Tehan.

In addition to the $100 million in Commonwealth funding for the first stage of the programme, a further $60 million in funding has today been announced for Round 2.

Round 2 of the Mobile Black Spot Programme, and Telstra's commitment to build 200 new 4G mini base stations, will offer further opportunities to meet unmet demand and provide coverage to more locations around regional and remote Australia.

Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Communications Paul Fletcher said that the outcome of the Mobile Black Spot Program had significantly exceeded expectations.

"Almost 500 new or upgraded mobile base stations will be built across regional and remote Australia, covering a total of 3,000 mobile black spots from the more than 6,000 black spots nominated by the public," Mr Fletcher said.

"The Mobile Black Spot Program has successfully leveraged significant co-contributions from State and local Governments, mobile carriers, and third party organisations, bringing the total funding amount to over $385 million," Mr Fletcher said.

"The Programme has delivered substantial competitive benefits, with both Telstra and Vodafone granted funding to build new or upgraded base stations. In addition, the mobile network operator selected to build a base station must give the other mobile network operators the opportunity to co-locate on that base station," Mr Fletcher said.

"The announcement to invest an additional $60 million of Commonwealth funds means that the work done under the first round of the Program - in identifying priority locations, engaging with the mobile network operators Telstra, Optus and Vodafone and other industry participants, developing guidelines for a competitive selection process, and in canvassing local councils and state governments for their support - can be leveraged to allow the next round of funding to be deployed efficiently," he said.

Under Round One of the Mobile Black Spot Program, a database of 6,221 locations around Australia was developed, being locations nominated by Australians as needing improved mobile coverage.

This database was the starting point for the competitive selection process under which the mobile network operators were asked to nominate sites where they would build new or upgraded base stations to serve the black spot locations nominated by the public, and the Government chose from the sites nominated by the mobile network operators using a ranking process specified in the guidelines.

The Government will re-open the database allowing members of the public to nominate further locations in outer metropolitan, regional and remote Australia which do not have mobile coverage. Nominations can be emailed tomobilecoverage@communications.gov.au