A major new partnership promises to offer electric cooperatives access to advanced wireless tools that could dramatically increase connectivity and resilience in remote communities.

NRTC announced it has teamed up with telecom giant Ericsson to deploy LTE (Long Term Evolution) cellular and microwave technologies to offer electric co-ops the latest advances in secure, private bidirectional grid communications. Utility grade wireless comms provider Southern Linc is providing core hosting, and Anterix is providing 900 MHz spectrum.

"This collaboration closes a critical gap that rural electric cooperatives will face as they modernize their grid infrastructure,” said Joe Walsh, NRTC’s vice president of smart grid advisory and networks. “Together, we're forging a path towards unparalleled connectivity, resilience and security, ensuring that communities across the U.S. have access to the cutting-edge solutions they need to thrive."

Key applications for the system include facilitating distribution automation, load management, integrating behind-the-meter sources, improving communications and monitoring for wildfire mitigation, Walsh said.

“Our goal is to help our members implement technology to address changing grid dynamics, and that requires a modern, standards-based communications network such as private LTE,” said Walsh.

NRTC and Ericsson recently tested a private 4G LTE wireless network across West Kentucky Rural Electric Cooperative Corp.’s thinly populated territory, where “running fiber was not economically feasible,” and found the technology improved the co-op’s supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems, grid resiliency, safety and flexibility, according to the case study.

“Traditional point-to-multipoint radio systems just can’t handle the demands, but we saw a plethora of use cases for private LTE,” said Justin McCann, the Mayfield-based co-op's vice president of engineering. “With private LTE, we’ll have a network that will support multiple smart grid systems for a fraction of what it would cost to expand just one system.”

Ravindra Singh, NRECA senior principal for distribution automation, noted that networks can help co-ops manage the proliferation of smart devices, sensors and communication systems.

“4G LTE technology can provide scalable, reliable and secure connectivity for distribution automation applications, enhancing monitoring and control of the distribution network in real-time for improved reliability and efficiency,” Singh said.

Walsh said he expects that 4G LTE will be “around for a long, long time” in the utility sector, and data will drive adoption of new communication technologies over the next decade.

“More and more co-ops are going to say, ‘I'm at the tipping point where I really need to have secure, reliable, ubiquitous communications,’” he said. “This platform will provide for the devices and applications that are coming onto the grid.”