Rollout now a third of the way complete in Waterford with over 5,400 homes and businesses ready to connect 

Over 3,800 premises and businesses in surrounds of Waterford area now able to avail of National Broadband Ireland high speed fibre

28 April 2023 National Broadband Ireland (NBI), the company delivering the new future-proofed, high-speed Fibre-to-the-Home network under the National Broadband Plan (NBP) on behalf of the Government, has announced that premises in the Waterford Deployment Area have been successfully connected and the first connection was made in Dunmore East, Co. Waterford. There are over 3,800 premises that can order or pre-order a high-speed connection in the Waterford Deployment Area in Co. Waterford.

Up to 16,000 premises in County Waterford are included in the State’s Intervention Area, which will see NBI deliver minimum speeds of 500 megabits per second to homes, businesses, farms and schools. As the biggest investment in rural Ireland since rural electrification, the County will receive €59 million of Government investment under the NBP. 

A third of all premises in the Waterford intervention area are now able to connect to high-speed fibre on the National Broadband Ireland network.

Peter Hendrick, Chief Executive Officer of National Broadband Ireland, said: “National Broadband Ireland is delighted to announce that over 3,809 premises in the Waterford area are ready to connect to high-speed broadband on our network and that the first connection was made in Dunmore East. 

“We are calling on residents in the Waterford deployment area to visit nbi.ie to check their Eircode to see if they can connect today. It is our goal to give homes and businesses throughout Ireland the opportunity to experience the life-changing benefits that high-speed broadband provides. We understand the role that high-speed broadband now plays in everyday lives and want to give the people of Ireland every opportunity to avail of it.

“Since the pandemic, there has been an increase in the amount of people looking to work and interact remotely.  That is why, for families like the Halley family, having a high-speed connection at home is vital for both professional and personal use.”

Max Halley, one of the first customers in the Waterford Deployment Area to be connected to the NBI network said: ““In our house, broadband has become an essential part of our lives. There is never a day that we are not online, whether that be for work or personal use. I was delighted when NBI Gigabit fibre became available to us through our local provider, MTS Media Ltd. 

“Our broadband was extremely slow prior to getting connected to the NBI Gigabit fibre. You would have needed a lot of patience as you would wait for long periods of time just to download one website or one programme. This is no longer the case as we can now download our chosen pages instantly! Getting connected has saved us so much time and a lot of hassle and we are looking forward to a future with NBI’s Gigabit fibre broadband.”

Jamie Moroney, Chief Technology Officer at MTS Media Ltd – the Retail Service Provider selling services on the new fibre network in the area – commented: “MTS customers are delighted to work with NBI on this project to provide the Halley family with Gigabit fibre broadband as part of the National Broadband Plan. In today’s world, having access to a high-speed broadband connection is extremely important and working with a trusted broadband partner helps to ease the pressure of getting connected. 

“Customers throughout Ireland are availing of the benefits that high-speed fibre broadband can provide and it is great to see the Johnstown area now join this connection. MTS is proud to be an official retail partner of NBI and we are excited to collaborate with NBI again on future projects.”

Jack Doyle, Broadband Officer for Waterford County Council said: “Waterford County Council is delighted to welcome NBI’s rollout of fibre infrastructure in the Waterford Deployment Area. It is great to see that homes, farms and businesses can now benefit from a connection to high-speed broadband via the National Broadband Plan. As the rollout continues, we look forward to the opportunities that these connections will provide in our local areas.”

As a wholesale network operator, NBI does not sell fibre broadband directly to end users, rather it enables services from a range of broadband providers or Retail Service Providers (RSPs). As a wholesale provider, NBI will make the new Fibre-to-the-Home network available to all RSPs operating in the Intervention Area.  

Some 62 RSPs have already signed up to sell services on the NBI network and 51 are certified as ready to start providing connections as of today. To see the retail broadband providers that are currently licensed to sell on the NBI™ network, visit NBI.ie/buy   

NBI contractors have been on the ground since January 2020 surveying townlands across the county. This involves physically walking the routes and documenting images, notes and measurements of the poles, cables and underground ducts in each area, and enables design solutions for the provision of the fibre network.  

Under the National Broadband Plan, 569,000 premises nationwide are included in the Intervention Area, which was established by the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications to identify areas where commercial operators are not currently providing access to high-speed broadband or do not intend to.   

Broadband Connection Points (BCPs) 

In advance of the Fibre-to-the-Home rollout, the NBP provides for the delivery of Broadband Connection Points (BCPs) nationwide. 574 of these sites, including Public BCPs, are now ‘live’. Public BCPs – which include sports clubs, community centres and tourist sites – will provide free public access to high-speed internet in the rollout area. Other BCP categories include schools and marts.

BCPs will pave the way for rural communities to receive the benefits of broadband, from mobile working, e-learning and mobile banking, to digital tourism. You can view BCPs at /bcp-map/. An example of some of the locations of Broadband Connection Points in Waterford include the Modeligo Community Hall, Mount Melleray Community Hall, and Knockanore Community Centre. Primary schools in the Intervention Area are also being connected for educational access as part of the NBP. 

Keep up to Speed! 

NBI is encouraging people to check their eligibility and register for updates at www.nbi.ie to receive regular notifications related to their own premises as works progresses in their area. 

Pictured Justine Judge, Head of Strategic Communications & Stakeholder Engagement at National Broadband Ireland, Jack Doyle, Broadband Officer for Waterford County Council, Jamie Moroney, Chief Technology Officer at MTS Media Ltd and Max Halley, one of the first customers in the Waterford Deployment Area to be connected to the NBI network. Photo credit: David Clynch