David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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448. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the total cost to date of the Metropolitan Area Networks; the locations at which MANs is available; the uptake in these areas of the network; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25589/13]

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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The Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs) Programme was developed to address the 2004 policy objectives of removing barriers to foreign direct investment (FDI), increasing regional telecoms competition and reducing the cost of telecoms.

The MANs Programme, which was eligible for co-funding of 40-50% under the European Regional Development Fund, has cost in the region of €174million to date. Under Phase I of this Programme, 28 MANs were completed and 60 MANs, covering 66 towns, were constructed under Phase II. The MANs which are regionally dispersed enhance the attractiveness of the locations for indigenous and foreign investment. A list of the MANs and their respective locations follows.

The MANs are managed, operated, maintained and marketed by e|net, on behalf of the State. There has been significant improvement over the last few years in the take-up by service providers of the MANs. Of the 88 MANs, 81 are currently "lit", that is, connected to backhaul and in use by one or more telecoms service providers. It is estimated that in excess of 600,000 individuals and business users are benefitting from the MANs infrastructure.

Since the inception of the MANs Programme, demand for bandwidth has increased significantly and this increase is expected to continue. Almost all broadband service providers, (including DSL, mobile, cable, wireless), are increasingly turning to optical fibre to backbone their networks. Service providers will continue to bring optical fibre closer to their end users. The MANs are ready to meet the demand for fibre connectivity and to serve the needs of service providers and their end users for the foreseeable future.

Phase One

Phase Two