Industrial connectivity provider Ondas Networks, formerly Full Spectrum, has acquired 700 MHz spectrum to deploy private cellular networks for industrial users in the state of Alaska and the Gulf of Mexico, as well as certain coastal counties in Texas and Louisiana.
The deal, acquired by parent Ondas Holdings, will see the Silicon Valley firm offer private mobile and fixed wireless services to mission-critical users, including electric and natural gas utilities, commercial and passenger rail companies, and oil and gas exploration and production firms.
Upper 700 MHz ‘A-block’ spectrum is considered ideal for utilities, critical infrastructure, IoT, M2M, and rail services.
Ondas Networks’s new Alaska license covers the entire state, consisting of 660,000 square miles of land and water surface area. It also extends around 12 miles from the Alaskan coastline, which stretches 6,640 miles – further than the remainder of the US coastline.
Ondas said it is now offering private cellular in the entire state, including the Alaska Marine Highway, a state-run ferry service offering transport of people, vehicles, and goods along the south-central coast of Alaska.
The license for the Gulf of Mexico covers 230,000 square miles, starting approximately 12 miles offshore and extending along the 1,600-mile US coastline from the Mexican border to the Florida Keys.
Ondas is also acquiring the licenses for Calhoun and Jefferson Counties in Texas and Cameron Parish in Louisiana. The Company’s service includes and extends from these coastal counties, providing private cellular for oil and gas operations in and around the Gulf of Mexico and for Cameron Parish and Port Arthur liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities.
Eric Brock, chairman and chief at Ondas Holdings, said: “Through this acquisition, we are able to bring secure, reliable industrial data networks to critical infrastructure providers and government users in the State of Alaska and the Gulf of Mexico for enhanced management of their remote infrastructure.”
He added: “We are open for business in the Gulf and in Alaska and will continue to expand and offer mission critical wireless service in areas across the US based on customer needs.”
Full Spectrum rebranded as Ondas Networks to support its expanded focus on industrial IoT applications for high-value sectors including electric, gas and water utilities, oil and gas operators, and government and transportation agencies.
The company has said previously 5G will not serve as the go-to connectivity in the IoT space, on the grounds there remains a market for a purpose-built approach to geographic coverage, security, and private networking.
Ondas Networks’ mission-critical IoT (MC-IoT) service leverages its own FullMAX technology with the upper 700 MHz A-block licenses for wide area private wireless service.
A-block licenses allow for flexible usage and high power ransmission. Each of Ondas Networks’ FullMAX base stations in the A block provides up to 3,000 square miles of wireless coverage, compared to less than 309 square miles from typical LTE base stations, said Ondas Networks.
