Taiwanese advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) and private network provider Ubiik has joined Electricity Canada, representing the electric power industry in Canada, to deliver private LTE networks for utilities in the 900MHz, 1.4GHz, and 1.8GHz bands. The arrangement furthers Ubiik’s international expansion, as well as its broadening portfolio offer. The firm, which has gained considerable success at home in Taiwan, including a $17 million tender from Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) at the start of 2023, acquired New Zealand industrial IoT solution provider Mimomax Wireless for an undisclosed fee in July.
Ubiik, founded in 2016, has developed its proposition around private low-power wide-area (LPWA) connectivity based on the Weightless technology for electricity metering. It has grown its low-power IoT connectivity offerings to include LTE-based NB-IoT and LTE-M. 3GPP Releases 14 and 15 of the LTE standard have made LTE-M and NB-IoT complementary with Weightless LPWAN, enabling Ubiik to offer a hybrid LPWA solution. It launched the first 3GPP Release 15 LTE-M/NB-IoT base station, under the brand goRAN, last year.
It introduced a base station, branded freeRAN, to also support unlicensed spectrum for LTE-M earlier this year. Its freeRAN and goRAN solutions seek to meet demand from utilities for secure and scalable 3GPP technologies, it said. Its private LTE play is because “public LTE networks… impede utilities’ AMI deployments”. It is pushing its private LTE offer as a solution for utilities and also for other mission-critical industry 4.0 sectors. It is targeting new sales in North America, India, Europe, and (per the acquisition of Mimomax) in Australasia.
Electricity Canada advocates on behalf of its members and partners for policies and schemes to raise competition and sustainability in the local industry. Its members include electrical utilities, power producers, transmission and distribution companies, system operators, and technology vendors. Ubiik said its private LTE solutions will help to support Canada’s “clean energy future”; it said it will collaborate with Electricity Canada’s members and partners.
Tienhaw Peng, founder and chief executive at Ubiik, said: “Developing a private LTE ecosystem with our goRAN LTE Base Station and LTE-M end devices will open up opportunities for connectivity… Our low-power and long-range devices [LTE-M end devices]… can be integrated with a wide range of smart meters, sensors, and controllers for bi-directional communication and remote management. [By] continuing to develop private LTE base stations and devices across a range of frequency bands, Ubiik aims to facilitate an easier route to grid visibility and control for utilities.”
Peng said in January of the Mimomax acquisition: “Our foray into the US private LTE market was driven by Ubiik’s homegrown solutions, and this acquisition of Mimomax injects additional momentum into our collective growth. In tandem, we’re poised to boost the performance, security, and cost-effectiveness of critical networks. Our commitment to propelling efficiencies for utility and industrial customers remains steadfast as we continue to unveil ground-breaking products and explore future acquisitions.”
The company’s $17 million deal with Taipower, announced in January, covers the deployment of an AMI system to host 450,000 additional smart meters. It is the company’s fourth consecutive AMI-tender win in Taiwan, and “Taiwan’s largest IoT project”, it said. The deal puts it on track to have over one million meters under management by 2024. The firm claimed major wins with Taiwanese utilities in 2018, 2019, and 2020; the latest success with Taipower brings the total value of its AMI contracts to $58 million, covering the installation of 1.17 million meters by 2024, as per the rollout schedule of the Taipower contract.
The Taipower project includes the deployment of (DLMS/COSEM) meter modules, data concentrator units (DCUs), plus network management and head-end (HES) systems. Ubiik will also take charge of equipment installation, operation, and maintenance – over a six-year term, at least. The firm said the deal confirms its status as the local market leader for AMI systems, and sets it on a global trajectory.
To hear more from Ubiik, including about Weightless and private LTE in smart grid and metering systems, tune into the RCR Wireless webinar on smart metering on October 19, also with Telit Cinterion, Kigen, and Transforma Insights; sign up here, or by clicking on the image below.
