A major government contract to develop high-speed internet connections for some 11,000 homes and businesses in rural communities here is set to be announced “in the coming months”.
Project Gigabit is part of a UK-wide plan to enable “hard to reach communities to access fast, reliable gigabit-capable broadband”.
Following a public review, some 59,000 premises across Northern Ireland were classified as ‘white’ – with no gigabit network infrastructure present, and none likely to be developed within three years.
The initial contract is designed to connect some 11,000 homes and businesses.
“A further 60,000 premises are under review; these are premises where suppliers have reported current or planned commercial broadband coverage, but where claimed current gigabit coverage has not been verified, or, in respect of planned build, where evaluators are confident that gigabit infrastructure will be delivered, but some risks to delivery remain, or there are some gaps in evidence,” the Department for the Economy (DfE) has said.
Procurement for the scheme here started in November, with an invitation to interested suppliers to complete a selection questionnaire to demonstrate their capacity and capability to deliver such a contract.
“Those suppliers who meet the published criteria of the selection questionnaire will be invited to submit a response to the requirements of the Invitation to tender for the project,” Economy Minister Conor Murphy said in a response to an Assembly Question from Alliance’s John Blair.
“The procurement will seek a supplier to address an initial scope of approximately 11,000 premises here.
“My department expects to award a contract for Project Gigabit in the coming months, subject to compliant bids being made, bids meeting the published criteria, and all necessary approvals being agreed.”
The department has said it “recognises that there is a need for government intervention in the parts of the country that are not commercially viable”.
“The UK Government has committed £5bn for the hardest to reach parts of the country, ensuring that all areas of the UK can benefit.
“This will be spent through a package of coordinated and mutually supportive interventions, collectively known as Project Gigabit.
“As part of this DfE, along with Building Digital UK (BDUK), is developing a procurement approach to incentivise the telecoms market to invest in delivering gigabit capable wholesale infrastructure in areas not considered to be commercially viable for new infrastructure. This procurement approach will be a successor to the much-needed superfast broadband programme and DfE’s broadband intervention, Project Stratum.
“Based on the outcome of the public review, DfE intends to launch an exercise to procure a contractor for the delivery of Project Gigabit in Northern Ireland.”