Belfast City Council has appointed Virgin Media Business to deliver a full fibre network to connect 200 council sites across the city.
It follows a successful application to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s Local Full Fibre Networks programme for £8 million in funding, and the council said it will guarantee its digital business requirements for the long term.
Installation of the new network is scheduled to be complete by September 2020, with 80% being provided through existing infrastructure.
The councils said it hopes this will improve broadband provision for Belfast businesses and indirectly lead to increased investment and economic growth.
Alderman Brian Kingston, chair of Belfast City Council’s Strategic Policy and Resources Committee, said: “As we increasingly operate in a digital environment, it’s vitally important that council future proofs its own network and connections to ensure an uninterrupted service for ratepayers and businesses in the future.
“This new network will meet our connectivity and digital business requirements for our long term future, delivering almost unlimited bandwidth and providing a more secure purpose-built network for transactions, allowing the council to deliver more efficient digital services for both staff and residents across all its sites.”
Rob Orr, executive director at Virgin Media Business, commented: “Virgin Media Business will be delivering more of its gigabit capable network to more premises in Belfast as part of this new deal. This will allow us to extend the reach of our network to new areas, connecting essential services that will help aid Belfast’s ambitious growth plans.”
Image: by Ty CC BY 2.0 through flickr
