Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 17 September 2019
530. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if the national broadband plan contractor will be able to claim compensation for the additional premises connected by Eir under the commitment agreement. [36963/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraSince July 2013, my Department has engaged in an ongoing and extensive process of mapping and monitoring of broadband availability in Ireland. This has been supported by a number of public consultations from 2014 to date. My Department is now conducting a consultation (see link here ) which provides an opportunity for broadband infrastructure operators to review the NBP Map to ensure that it correctly represents the information provided by them in the course of past mapping and public consultation exercises.
The consultation also seeks to assist the Department in its ongoing monitoring of commercial roll out. eir has reported that an additional circa 34,000 premises outside but contiguous to the 300,000 rural deployment have also been passed at the end of June 2019. However, as these premises are not covered by the Commitment Agreement signed by eir in April 2017, they have to date remained in the Intervention Area i.e. represented as AMBER on the High Speed Broadband Map. Where eir demonstrates that these premises are in fact passed and subject to providing sufficient assurances that at least 95% of orders received from these premises will be connected at the standard regulated connection charge, the NBP map could be revised to reflect this. The consultation also seeks to identify premises where commercial plans have not materialised and, similar to the update to the NBP Map in 2017 where 84,500 premises were brought back into the Intervention Area, premises previously marked as commercially served could be brought into the Intervention Area as part of this consultation process.
