BT to invest £20m in Northern Ireland broadband rollout

Telecom giant BT Group is set to invest £20m in a major expansion of its broadband services in Northern Ireland.

Several areas across the province have been unable to gain access to high internet speeds, with BT aiming to rectify the reduced coverage with the new investment.

BT announced on Thursday that the new rollout would bring ultrafast broadband to a further 140,000 premises across NI. The rollout is expected to be completed by March 2019.

The company added that the implementation of a new structure would allow homes and businesses to reach speeds of up to 1 gigabyte per second.

Mairead Meyer, Managing Director Networks, BT Northern Ireland said, "We’re delighted to be investing at this significant level, delivering against our local ambition to futureproof our Northern Ireland infrastructure and rank favourably amongst the best fibre networks in Europe.

"Through our current investment programmes, 25 per cent of homes and businesses in Northern Ireland are scheduled to have access to ultrafast broadband by March 2019. These investments are underpinning Northern Ireland’s internet economy and society, and bringing an online experience like never before to consumers and organisations."