Offaly's rollout of 'transformational' high-speed fibre broadband in final stages
Offaly County Council’s Ray Bell provided an update on the rollout at the Tullamore Municipal District AGM
The rollout of high-speed fibre broadband under the National Broadband Plan (NBP) in County Offaly is now entering its final stages, marking a significant milestone in the county’s digital development.
Alongside the National Broadband Plan (NBP), commercial operators including OpenEir, SIRO and Virgin Media continue to invest and expand their networks across the county, ensuring extensive coverage for homes, businesses and communities.
Over recent years, significant investment and strong collaboration between Offaly County Council and telecommunications providers have transformed broadband availability across the county.
These partnerships have ensured that almost all homes, farms, businesses and schools in Offaly can now access high-speed fibre broadband, with the final connections now nearing completion.
Ray Bell, Digital/Broadband Officer and Head of Info Systems with Offaly County Council, updated the elected members on the broadband rollout during a presentation at the Tullamore Municipal District AGM in the Town Hall on Thursday, June 11.
Commenting on the progress as the project nears completion, he said: “The level of investment we’ve seen in broadband infrastructure across Offaly in recent years has been transformational. With over €100 million invested across the county, this has completely changed the broadband landscape in Offaly, we now have a resilient, future-proof digital network in place for the county. We now have a modern, high-quality fibre network that will support communities, businesses and services for decades to come.”
Speaking following the presentation, Councillor Aoife Masterson hailed the impact the broadband rollout will have across every demographic in the Faithful County. She mentioned: “From children learning in school, their parents helping them with homework in the evening, the people working remotely from home to the older person being able to look up things on the internet, every aspect of life within Offaly is being impacted by this progress.”
The Sinn Féin representative added: “When it comes to having broadband, we think of being able to go online but it actually helps us to physically gather in spaces together as well and to organise events within the community so this is the type of technology that we need to embrace as a county and as a country.”
The update also outlined that the NBP intervention area in Offaly covers approximately 13,000 premises, primarily in rural parts of the county that were not served by commercial providers. As of 2026, over 12,500 of these premises can now order or access fibre broadband, with the remaining areas close to completion.
Overall fibre coverage across the county has increased dramatically in recent years, representing one of the most significant infrastructure upgrades in the county’s history.
While the physical rollout is nearing completion, attention is now turning to uptake, with ongoing campaigns encouraging households and businesses to connect and take full advantage of high-speed fibre broadband.
The availability of high-speed fibre broadband is expected to have a lasting impact on the county supporting remote working, business growth, education, healthcare access and social inclusion, particularly in rural communities that previously lacked reliable connectivity.
With the rollout effectively complete, Offaly is now one of the best-connected counties in Ireland, with a modern digital infrastructure that will support communities, empower businesses and drive economic growth well into the future.