Shannon Broadband Ltd appoint contractor for Broadband Network in eight Shannon Region Towns

Clarke Quarries Ltd part of the Clarke Group based in Co. Cavan has been awarded the contract by Shannon Broadband Ltd to undertake the laying of fibre optic cable in eight towns which are: Abbeyfeale (approx. 4.1km of cable to be laid) and Newcastle West (approx. 6.2km of cable to be laid) in Co. Limerick; Kilrush (approx. 5.2km cable to be laid) in County Clare, Nenagh (approx.10.8km of cable to be laid), Roscrea (approx. 8.1km of cable to be laid) and Templemore (approx.5.7km of cable to be laid) in Co. Tipperary; Banagher (approx.4.2km of cable to be laid) and Birr (approx. 7.7km of cable to be laid) in Co. Offaly. The network being installed around the towns is called a ‘Metropolitan Area Network’, or ‘MAN’ for short.

Shannon Broadband Ltd is a public sector consortium led by Shannon Development, in partnership with Limerick City Council, Limerick County Council, Clare County Council, North Tipperary County Council, and Offaly County Council. Established in 2003 Shannon Broadband Ltd is  the first public sector regional telecoms company to be set up in  Ireland  . It was set up to establish good broadband ‘connectivity’ around the Shannon Region.

Announcing the appointment  Kevin Thompstone  , Chief Executive, Shannon Development and Chairman of Shannon Broadband Ltd said, “We are delighted to be undertaking phase two of the MAN project. The aim of Shannon Broadband is to develop world-class broadband infrastructure and services network throughout the Shannon Region. We have already completed the laying of over 57kms of fibre optic cable in Limerick  City  as part of our first development phase. The presence of cable will make it highly attractive and feasible for licensed operators to offer the latest broadband services to businesses, commercial interests, public services, local communities and domestic users. Ensuring fast, cost effective broadband services is key to attracting inward investment and creating more jobs in the future,” he said.

Work will start on laying the cable in each of the eight towns in early June and is expected to be completed before the end of the year.

“In today’s knowledge-based’ economy and society, the availability of high speed, competitively priced Broadband is critical. This new network will send a message to any investor that these Shannon Region towns are at the cutting edge in terms of internet access and willingness to embrace the information economy,” said Mr. Thompstone.

Every effort will be made to minimise disruption to the public during the laying of fibre optic cables. For instance advance work in laying ducting has already been undertaken on some roads by the Local Authorities during work on other construction projects, which should keep disruption to the public to a minimum in those streets. A dedicated phone line has been set up to answer any queries from the public Tel: 061-402233. Further information on the project can be obtained fromwww.shannonbroadband.com

Once work in all towns has been complete, the broadband networks infrastructure will be managed by a special Government appointed Management Services Entity (MSE). The MSE will be responsible for making the facilities of the MANs available to authorised telecoms operators on a wholesale basis, so that they can offer broadband services to the different segments of the local market.

The Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs), built under the e-Commerce Measure of the National Development Plan is co-financed by the EU from the European Regional Development Fund.