Ericsson has been confirmed (by Ericsson) as the key vendor for the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) to deploy private LTE across “parts of” 68 counties in Texas, in the US. It follows news last month that LCRA had taken a new licence with specialist US private network provider Anterix to use the local 900 MHz band for private LTE across new services areas in Texas. A vendor partner was not identified at the time. It has tested network equipment previously from Nokia, also, going back 12 months, along with devices from the likes of Sonim, Cisco, and Samsung
The new local Anterix licences at 900 MHz will see the non-profit public utility expand its private LTE coverage to another 34 counties in the state; its network already covers 68 with the previous Anterix licences. The Ericsson announcement appears to correspond with the old footprint. LCRA’s private LTE network is geared to provide IoT asset and system monitoring and operational intelligence to drive grid resilience. Ericsson called it a “mission-critical” setup with a geo-redundant 4G/5G core, plus radio (RAN), management, and security solutions.
Ericsson will manage the network, across Texas – with 24/7/365 monitoring from a dedicated network operations centre (NOC) team. The network will be strengthened against extreme weather and malicious actors, said Ericsson. “Initial operations” begin this quarter (Q1 2025), it said. The whole infrastructure will support push-to-talk and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems for LCRA grid operations across Texas, as well as communications support for electric cooperatives, and municipal, school, transit and other governmental entities.
LCRA, in charge of 5,000 circuit miles of transmission lines and 400-odd power substations, is one of the largest providers of electric power in Texas, supplying power to more than 30 retail electric cooperatives and municipalities. It also manages the lower 600 miles of the Texas Colorado River, providing water to around 1.4 million people, and operates more than 40 local public parks in Texas.
Stephen Kellicker, executive vice president of enterprise resources at LCRA, said: “A private LTE network will provide LCRA with additional capacity, control and security capabilities that are essential to our role as a leading public utility in Texas. We are committed to enhancing our operational capabilities while helping to ensure the highest levels of security and reliability in our service to Texans.”
Eric Boudriau, vice president and head of regional customers for Ericsson in North America, said: “This agreement with LCRA demonstrates Ericsson’s commitment to securing and modernizing America’s critical infrastructure. By implementing a mission critical private LTE network, LCRA is taking proactive steps to enhance grid resilience, strengthen cybersecurity, and prepare for future technological advances that will benefit millions of Texans.”
New Jersey based Anterix holds 900 MHz spectrum in the mainland US, as well as in Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. Its goal is to license 900 MHz spectrum and supply 900 MHz solutions to the utility sector to drive grid modernisation. It counts Ameren, Evergy, San Diego Gas & Electric, and Xcel Energy among its energy and utility customers using its 900 MHz spectrum band in the US.
