Siro to expand fibre network hoping to reach 700,000 premises by 2026

THE fibre broadband network Siro, is set to expand in Dublin city areas, including Walkinstown, Kimmage and Crumlin.

Its network is already established in other parts of the city such as Fairview, Raheny, Finglas, Artane and Coolock.

Siro, the joint venture between the ESB and Vodafone, aims to expand the network in Dublin to 100,000 homes.

Siro said the €100 million rollout is part of its strategy to reach areas underserved by fibre to the home broadband.

The company already reaches around a quarter of Ireland’s homes and businesses, or 550,000 of Ireland’s 2.1m premises, and operates as a rival network to Eir.

It says it hopes to extend this coverage to 700,000 premises by 2026.

It does not lay networks in areas earmarked by the National Broadband Plan, which will cover 564,000 premises in rural areas not served by any commercial operator with high speed broadband.

Siro lays the fibre infrastructure while standard broadband and telecoms retailers then resell it in their own packages to home and businesses customers.

“The presumption that our cities already enjoy universal full fibre connectivity can be inaccurate,” said John Kearney, CEO of Siro.

“Poor broadband can exist in areas of our cities and its suburbs, just as much as it can be found in more remote areas. By now reaching areas underserved by fibre to the home broadband, such as the Docklands, East Wall or Crumlin and Walkinstown, we are striving to ensure these areas have the broadband infrastructure essential for the future wider social and economic development of the city.”