Almost 12,000 premises in Co Westmeath can avail of a high-speed connection today  

 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 said that almost 12,000 Westmeath homes, farms and businessescan now avail of a high-speed fibre broadband connection, with 5,000 premises already connected to NBI’s network.  

12,000 premises in Co Westmeath 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, Co Westmeath will receive €46m of Government investment under the National Broadband Plan.   

There is a total of 11,918 premises that can now pre-order or order high-speed, reliable broadband across the county with 5,143 connections made so far. This includes the rural communities of Athlone, Mullingar and Delvin.  

National Broadband Ireland is encouraging all Co Westmeath residents to visit nbi.ie/map/ and check their Eircode to see if they’re ready to connect.  

TJ Malone, Chief Executive Officer, National Broadband Ireland, said: “We’re proud to see over 5,000 homes and businesses in Co Westmeath now connected to the NBI network™.   

“The National Broadband Plan rollout is enabling real change in how rural communities live and work, from online learning and business growth to better access to health and public services. We’re encouraging everyone in Westmeath to check their Eircode on nbi.ie and stay up to date as the rollout progresses.”  

National Rollout Progress 

NBI has now passed over 396,000 homes, farms and businesses in rural Ireland to high-speed broadband with almost 140,000 now connected. The average take-up rate of 35% is well ahead of projections and international comparisons and surpasses 50% in areas of the country where the network has been live for 18 months.  

The National Broadband Ireland website is regularly updated to show estimated connection dates. The easiest way to get updates on when a home or business will be ready to order is by signing up for NBI email alerts at nbi.ie/eoi/.  

Choosing a Broadband Provider 

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 72 RSPs have already signed up to sell services on the NBI network™ and 68 are certified to provide connections as of today. To see the retail broadband providers that are currently licensed to sell on the NBI network™, visit NBI.ie/buy.  

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 progress in their area.    

Broadband Connection Points  

In advance of the Fibre-to-the-Home rollout, the NBP provides for the delivery of Broadband Connection Points (BCPs) nationwide. 955 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 www.nbi.ie/bcp-map/. An example of some of the locations of Broadband Connection Points in Westmeath include Ballycomoyle GAA Club, Castledaly Community Centre and Clonkill Hurling Club. Primary schools in the Intervention Area are also now connected for educational access as part of the NBP.