Image: Shutterstock/Flegere Image: Shutterstock/Flegere EIR COULD ROLL out the National Broadband Plan for less than €1 billion, the Oireachtas Communications Committee will be told today.
Lennon adds in her opening statement to the committee that “the logic” of the preferred bidder not using fibre Eir has already installed along 300,000 homes, instead deciding to duplicate the work, “is not clear to us”.Government announced in May that it is to proceed with its plans for the €3 billion NBP, which aims to bring high-speed internet to more than 540,000 homes, farms and businesses across rural Ireland.
The former communications minister Denis Naughten also had to quit his ministerial post over a series of controversial meetings with Granahan McCourt’s chief executive David McCourt.Criticism has been levelled at the government over pressing ahead with the bid, with some in the opposition stating that the State will not own the network.
Eir had entered into a contract to deliver fibre broadband to the 300,000 households, which have been acknowledged by department officials as being ”more commercially viable”. Fibre cables will also have to be installed on poles owned by Eir. Leasing these cables from Eir will cost in the region of up to €1 billion, a figure the committee will hear confirmed today.
“It now appears that the decision taken by the bidder not to re-use this existing fibre infrastructure, but instead to duplicate and overbuild our fibre across the 300k, has driven up the costs and associated subsidy.”
Yet they only offer terrible customer service.
And retain ownership?
And why couldn't they? They own the network, i think it was due to brown envelopes that eir didn't or wasn't allowed to do it.
This reminds me of Sinn Fein. Refuse to do the job yourself but tell everyone who will listen what a bad job the other fellow is doing.
Lol