Almost 1,500 homes and businesses near Offaly town can now avail of fibre broadband

 National Broadband Ireland (NBI) have announced that Edenderry has now been connected to high-speed fibre broadband.

The update arrives as the company continues to deliver the new future-proofed, high-speed fibre to the home network under the National Broadband Plan (NBP) on behalf of the Government.

NBI’s connection of Edenderry means that 1,446 homes and businesses can now access high-speed fibre broadband. 

The completion of works near Edenderry means that 11,566 premises that can now pre-order or order high-speed, reliable broadband across Offaly with 3,484 connections made to date.

National Broadband Ireland have also confirmed that works have also been completed recently in rural areas surrounding Tyrrellspass and Tullamore as part of the national rollout. 

READ MORE: Oh what a night! Three community groups scoop top prizes in Offaly table quiz

National Broadband Ireland is encouraging all Offaly residents to visit their website in order to check their Eircode to see if they’re ready to connect and find out more about placing an order.    

NBI’s fibre broadband rollout under the National Broadband Plan is delivering broadband services to what is known as the State’s Intervention Area.

This includes the most remote and rural parts of Ireland where commercial operators have no plans to deliver high-speed broadband. 

The Intervention Area currently includes 13,000 premises in Offaly which will see NBI deliver minimum speeds of 500 megabits per second to homes, businesses, farms, and schools across the Faithful County.

As the biggest investment in rural Ireland since rural electrification, Offaly will receive €48m of Government investment under the National Broadband Plan. 

TJ Malone, Chief Executive Officer of National Broadband Ireland, said: "We are delighted to announce that almost 1,500 Offaly homes, businesses and farms near Edenderry can now connect to NBI’s high-speed fibre broadband. 

Those connected are experiencing the life-changing benefits of high-speed fibre broadband with minimum speeds of 500 megabits per second."

He added: "With the national switch-off of the copper network approaching, NBI’s fibre network will ensure communities across Co Offaly are prepared for the future by supporting remote working, education, healthcare access, and local enterprise while providing the reliability needed for everyday living. 

As part of the national rollout, NBI has now passed over 451,000 homes, farms and businesses in rural Ireland to high-speed broadband with over 165,000 now connected.

The average take-up rate of 36% is well ahead of projections and international comparisons and surpasses 60% in some areas of the country where the network has been live for 18 months. 

The National Broadband Ireland website is regularly updated to show estimated completion dates with the main rollout due to be concluded by the end of this year.