Rural west Offaly is about to be connected to the information age by satellite, through a State-sponsored link which may revolutionise the way such communities attract foreign investment.
The Irish Times has learned that negotiations between Offaly County Council and the Department of Public Enterprise are being finalised for inclusion of the county in the State's proposed VSAT scheme.
VSAT is a satellite-based form of broadband communications which allows remote areas to enjoy the same standard of connection as their more "wired-up" counterparts in large urban areas, where fibre-optic cabling is available.
It is hoped the move will attract modern, high-technology industries to locate in the region and reverse its reputation as an industrial black-spot.
Essentially the system operates similarly to digital satellite television. Instead of being wired up to the service provider, high-quality signals are transferred via satellite from sender to receiver. The advantage is the system's simplicity, and the opportunity it offers rural areas to offer advanced connection to firms who want to invest in the area.
It is also comparatively inexpensive as there is no road-digging or cable-laying. The signal is beamed about the county by beacons. Equipment to receive the signal would be purchased by the users, in the same way people buy televisions to pick up the State's television signal.
According to Mr Jack Keyes, director of Offaly Community Development Board, the system is different from simple Internet access in that it is many times more capable of transmitting large volumes of data at high speeds.
Mr Keyes said the council would be the lead local authority in the venture and would sign the contract in the coming weeks for the other bodies involved. A Department of Public Enterprise spokesman also confirmed that a formal signing of contracts was being arranged.
High-technology industries normally restricted to areas which have broadband communications access would now be able to set up in rural areas of west Offaly, said Mr Keyes. Other essential services such as the high-quality power supplies needed are already in place in the county because of its traditional association with electricity generation.
And while the ESB has announced closures of its peat-fired stations, access to the national grid will still be available. With improved access to the N6 and N7 national roads, VSAT may attract the county's long-sought share of high-technology industries which have fuelled much of the State's economic prosperity over recent years.
The news may be of most interest to workers in the power plants which are decommissioning, as moves are already under way, in tandem with the ESB, Bord na Mona and the Community Development Board, to attract new industries in the wake of the peat plant shutdowns.
Offaly and the midlands generally has seen its share of traditional industries closing in recent years, most notably the Lowe Alpine manufacturing unit in Tullamore, which is due to close tomorrow.
Also in Tullamore the Snickers clothing factory recently announced 50 job losses. Dawn Dairies announced 60 job losses in Moate, Co Westmeath, while there have been other job cuts at Atlantic Mills in Longford and Tullamore, Avon in Portarlington, Leoni in Birr, Daiber in Tullamore and Tarkett in Mullingar. The Irish National Organisation of the Unemployed said the midlands now has the highest level of unemployment in the State.
