Many parts of State could not support high-tech industries

Plans for the development of e-commerce and other high-technology industries have been dealt a substantial blow following the revelation that the State's electricity and telecommunications infrastructure is largely incapable of supporting such ventures outside the greater Dublin area.

The situation appears to be at odds with the Government's policy "to actively pursue the positioning of Ireland as a global leader in electronic commerce", as was recommended in the report of the advisory committee on telecommunications late last year.

It also contrasts with the position of Northern Ireland where the Star Project extended broadband communications across the North in the early 1980s, and continual investment in the electricity grid has ensured the required industrial standard is available.

While the ESB head of transmission, Mr Bernard O'Reilly, maintains that "the ESB has the plans, the ability and the money" to radically extend the electricity grid by 2003", The Irish Times understands the company is deeply concerned about its present capacity to supply industry beyond the immediate west Dublin area.

Such concerns follow the rescinding of planning permission for pylons across the estuary in Cork, and fears that a number of planning applications in line with a £500 million expansion of the ESB national grid could face similar opposition.

Whatever about the ESB's difficulties, as the infrastructure stands vast areas of the State are singularly unable to support anything other than basic industry.

Computer manufacturing and software companies, as well as those engaged in call-centre activity and the pharmaceutical and other scientific areas, require a high standard of electrical supply which does not fluctuate and has a constant frequency of 50 mHz.

Such companies in the Republic have said the 110 kV lines are insufficient for their needs, and while the more powerful 220 kV lines are suitable, the companies insist they must locate close to more than one supply line to ensure a continuation of service in the event of power breakdowns.

It is because of this that Mr John Fitzgerald, of the ESRI, has commented that areas of the Republic are currently unsuitable for modern industry.

Indeed, an analysis of the electricity supply grid reveals that the location of the Masonite plant at Carrick-on-Shannon is as far north-west as the ESB's 220 kV lines go.

The high-technology industry targeted by Government policy also requires what is called Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), a networking standard for transmitting voice, data and video simultaneously.

However, while most of the major towns in the south and east are served by fibre-optic cable, just four towns were deemed by the economic consultants Fitzpatrick Associates to be able to support such advanced broad-band communications by March of this year. In the Border, midlands and western regions the situation is even worse, with little electrical infrastructure suitable for industry, while the "roll-out" of fibre-optic cable is practically non-existent.

Yet plans to lure high-technology industry to the regions have been put forward by a number of consultants including the Buchanan and Fitzpatrick reports: the latter even recommended that a centre of e-commerce be developed in Sligo. Meanwhile, the IDA had already announced that it is to bias new foreign investment to areas outside Dublin, and a section on regional development is widely expected to be included in the National Development Plan 20002006.

The midlands and western regions north of a line from Galway to Athlone to Monaghan are particularly devoid of the vital broad-band 2.5 Gbits/s fibre, while the Border area of Donegal is served by links extending from Northern Ireland.