National Broadband Ireland Has Connected 100,000 Homes and Businesses Nationwide

National Broadband Ireland (NBI) has announced that it has now connected over 100,000 homes, farms and businesses to high-speed fibre broadband infrastructure under the National Broadband Plan. NBI marked the milestone with the Stynes family in Co. Meath, who were recently connected to NBI’s network.

Overall, there are 304,606 homes, farms and businesses in rural Ireland that can avail of a high-speed fibre broadband connection on the NBI network. With 101,645 of these premises connected to date, the average take-up rate is 33%, which is well ahead of projections and international comparisons. The take-up rate is surpassing 50% in areas of the country where the network has been live for 18 months.

Over 45,000km of fibre cabling has been laid to build the NBI network to this point, which is enough cable to circumnavigate the globe.

Minister of State Ossian Smyth said: “It’s very positive to see 100,000 connections achieved at this point in the National Broadband Plan. The level of take-up of broadband services that we’re seeing across the country underpins why we needed a State-backed rollout to ensure that no community in rural Ireland is left behind.

“The benefits of this rollout are being seen across many areas, including climate action, agriculture, education, transport, tourism, and healthcare. This is a transformational project that is contributing significantly to removing the digital divide between urban and rural communities in Ireland.

Peter Hendrick, Chief Executive Officer of National Broadband Ireland, said: “We’re absolutely thrilled to have already connected 100,000 homes, farms and businesses across the country to our high-speed fibre network. The take-up rates we’re seeing are far ahead of what we had initially hoped for and show the strong demand for fibre broadband in rural Ireland.

“The demand for access to our network has been made possible through our focus on becoming the best open access wholesale provider in the world – resulting in over 70 retail service providers already on board with NBI and a really broad range of choice and competitiveness for consumers.

“Access to our network has become a lifeline for rural communities nationwide, bringing significant positive change to our customers’ lives. NBI high-speed fibre is now allowing people to return to the countryside to be closer to family, businesses to tap into new opportunities for growth such as e-commerce, and farmers to leverage innovative technologies to enhance their operations.”

“Every NBI fibre connection is capable of delivering up to 10Gbps speeds on day one, with initial speeds on offer of 500Mbps, 1Gbps and 2Gbps.”

Speaking on how NBI’s rollout of the National Broadband Plan is proceeding on budget and on schedule, Mr. Hendrick added, “We’re immensely proud that our delivery of this project continues to progress as planned, with 300,000 premises now able to avail of a high-speed connection on our network. Staying on schedule and within budget for a project of this scale reflects the strong collaboration and commitment from everyone involved in delivering this essential infrastructure to rural Ireland.”

NBI-connected customers Janet and Paul Stynes from Longwood Village, Co. Meath, described the transformational and positive impact that a connection to high-speed fibre broadband has had on their family.

Mrs Stynes said, “Getting connected to high-speed fibre broadband has been a game-changer for my family. Before the installation, we struggled with unreliable mobile broadband, and it affected everything from work to everyday activities like streaming and staying connected.

“Now, with fibre, the difference is incredible. Our connection is fast and reliable and has completely removed the stress of managing multiple devices at home. Whether it’s work calls, the kids watching Netflix, or simply having seamless Wi-Fi throughout the house, it has transformed how we live and work, making it all so much easier.”