Internet provider Siro has said advice provided to the State on measures to reduce new broadband infrastructure costs could add €2,500 to the price of new houses.
Last year, the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport commissioned German firm WIK-Consult to provide technical advice on the implementation of the new Gigabit Infrastructure Act (GIA).
The new European Union regulation will shift responsibility to provide fibre broadband infrastructure to developers. Previously builders had to accommodate internet providers on site who installed the infrastructure.
WIK-Consult has proposed new underground cables are built from the curtilage of each home or apartment block to a telecommunications chamber network.
It also recommended against use of existing utility infrastructure “so as to facilitate access for all providers” to communications systems.
Last year, Siro launched a new product called OpenPort to help developers meet these new GIA requirements by utilising the existing ESB electricity network to install broadband cables, which would avoid the requirement to install separate underground infrastructure.
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Research carried out by building consultancy Mitchell McDermott, which was commissioned by Siro, said WIK-Consult’s proposal could add €390 million to the cost of building homes over the next five years compared with Siro’s alternative.
It said WIK-Consult’s recommendation would add €2,500 to building costs of a house, compared with €900 per unit under Siro’s option.
For apartments, Siro’s system costs €341 per unit, while the WIK-Consult option would cost €1,225 per unit.
Based on housing supply forecasts for the next five years, Mitchell McDermott said the WIK-Consult method would cost the construction industry in the region of €390 million to build this infrastructure.
Siro, jointly owned by ESB and Vodafone, has said its OpenPort product would be provided at no cost to developers.
A spokeswoman for Siro said the department should focus on avoiding measures that would increase the cost of delivering new homes in Ireland.
“Siro strongly supports the objectives of the GIA to enable faster, more efficient and more cost-effective roll-out of fibre broadband networks in new developments by leveraging existing infrastructure and avoiding unnecessary duplication.
“However, we are concerned that the proposals currently being considered by the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport risk diverging from these principles. As they stand, they appear misaligned with European norms and the intent of this EU legislation and could add up to €400 million to housing delivery costs over the next five years.”
