The Government will spend a further €50 million to build fibre optic networks in 35 towns and a cross-border broadband network between Derry and Letterkenny.
The approved towns for the new broadband investment span almost every county in the State and will create fibre optic rings from Skibbereen to Ballybofey.
The broadband projects will be grant-aided by the Government under the National Development Plan, and are co-funded by the European Union.
When complete, the networks will enable Eircom's rivals to offer high-speed internet services in a range of regional areas outside Dublin.
Eircom reiterated its opposition to the Government's investment plan yesterday, accusing the State of duplicating its existing broadband networks.
Mr David McRedmond, Eircom's commercial director, said there was obvious duplication in the new projects, as 27 of the 35 towns already had access to broadband supplied by Eircom. The remaining eight regional towns would get broadband from Eircom in 2005, he said.
Mr McRedmond would not comment on the European Commission's recent decision to investigate the State's broadband investment policy. He said this was a matter for the Commission.
Last week, the Commission said in a report that it would look into the State's broadband investment policy to see if it represented illegal state aid.
But the Government insists that its infrastructure is open to all firms that want to use it to provide a service, including Eircom, and is not anti-competitive.
The investment will enable the construction of about 3,200 km of telecom duct infrastructure and about 200,000 km of the latest fibre optic cable.
Project construction will begin in the spring, and most projects should be completed in a year.
The Minister for Communications, Mr Dempsey, said the investment would bring ultra-high-speed communication links to towns with an aggregate population of more than 160,000.
He said his Department was examining a further 10 project proposals and he expected to make an announcement on these networks in the New Year.
