Fibrus, Northern Ireland's full fibre operator, has secured £220 million worth of funding from a consortium of banks, including the UK Infrastructure Bank, to finance the deployment of fibre in Northern Ireland.
Fibrus is committed to delivering world-class broadband services to rural and remote areas and its network already covers more than 120,000 homes and businesses. The company is investing £500 million to reach 330,000 previously underserved homes.
This latest investment is being funded by public and private capital, including Project Stratum, the NI implementation programme that has provided £197 million to boost rural broadband connectivity. He said: "We are very aware of the importance of high speed broadband in Northern Ireland and we are improving lives with every connection we make. Other broadband providers are leaving too many homes and businesses behind, and that's unacceptable. This latest investment has helped us achieve our current plan of connecting 330,000 premises and we are well ahead of schedule.
Northern Ireland's business community has also welcomed the regional rollout of full fibre broadband, with the CBI's Northern Ireland Director saying: "Until now, too many companies and entrepreneurs in remote areas of Northern Ireland have been left behind as the economy has moved online. By ensuring that every site has access to reliable, high-quality broadband in a short period of time, we are giving Northern Ireland a competitive advantage that is the envy of other regions. This investment by Infrastructure Bank UK is a vote of confidence in Fibrus and the NI economy.
The CEO of investment partner Infrastructure Bank UK added: "I am delighted that we are able to play a role in supporting homes and businesses in Northern Ireland to access fast and reliable broadband."
