More spectrum may be coming available for electric utilites to use for their communications networks. T-Mobile has agreed to divest its 800 MHz spectrum portfolio to Grain Management. In a partnership with Black & Veatch, Grain is planning to market the spectrum portfolio to utilities, other critical infrastructure industry operators, rural and regional operators, and other enterprises, for meeting crucial telecommunications needs. The agreement is expected to close by the end of April 2025 pending regulatory approval.
For utilities, access to dedicated spectrum has historically been a challenge. Many rely on aging networks, unlicensed spectrum, or third-party providers, limiting their ability to implement modern, data-driven solutions. With the availability of this new spectrum, utilities have the opportunity to build out private, secure wireless networks, which allows for better grid management, integrating distributed energy resources, and better outage response times.
"It is huge for mutual aid," David Hulinsky, private networks leader at Black & Veatch told us at DistribuTECH last week. The idea being that if utilities nationwide are able to operate on private LTE and a specific spectrum, it would be much easier to communicate among various crews during storm response.
Grid Resilience and Operational Efficiency
One of the benefits of this spectrum reallocation is the potential for increased resilience. As extreme weather events and cyber threats pose growing risks to the grid, utilities require robust, reliable communication networks to maintain situational awareness and coordinate real-time responses. The 800 MHz spectrum’s propagation characteristics—allowing signals to travel long distances and penetrate obstacles—make it suitable for covering expansive service territories, particularly in rural and remote areas.
By deploying advanced communications infrastructure using this spectrum, utilities can unlock capabilities such as predictive maintenance, remote monitoring, and advanced metering infrastructure (AMI).
A New Era of Utility Communications
The transition to a smarter, more adaptive grid relies on seamless communication between assets, control centers, and field crews. More available spectrum could allow utilities to construct dedicated networks tailored to their specific operational needs. They could then can transition away from legacy systems and move toward integrated, technology-enabled networks that support real-time data exchange and automation.
And as utilities adopt more IoT-enabled sensors, distributed energy management tools, and demand-response programs, having a reliable, private communications backbone will be crucial.
