The Minister for Communications, Mr Dermot Ahern, today started the first phase of a €50 million ESB broadband network.
Mr Ahern switched on the "southern loop" of the network at a ceremony in Limerick.
The southern loop network has almost 1,300 kilometres of 48-fibre cable in a figure-of-eight loop from Dublin to the Midlands, Limerick, Cork, Waterford, Wexford and back to Dublin.
Mr Ahern called for a cut in broadband prices to drive demand and increase broadband availability. "The new economy is not immune from old style economics. The only thing that will drive broadband is price. We have to cut prices, attract volume, drive demand. The only relevant broadband driver is price," he said.
The network is expected to be completed by autumn, with broadband access around the country in a figure-of-eight from Buncrana, Co Donegal, to Cork.
The ESB will operate as a "carriers carrier", offering broadband to telecommunications companies and other businesses.
