PGE Dystrybucja has signed a contract with Sweden’s Ericsson, for the supply and deployment of components necessary for the expansion of special communications needed to ensure energy infrastructure is properly secured.
„The 450 MHz frequency band dedicated to the energy sector, in accordance with the provisions of the nationwide reservation granted to PGE Systemy, is intended for the implementation of tasks in the field of voice communication and data transmission for the management of networks for the transmission or distribution of gaseous, liquid or electric fuels on the territory of Poland,” explained Polska Grupa Energetyczna. „The main objective shall be to ensure the safety, continuity, remediation or monitoring of those networks against events that pose a threat to the supply of energy or its carriers, or to ensure the continuity of the supply of energy or its carriers to customers. At PGE Dystrybucja, based on the LTE450 network, in particular, services will be provided within the framework of modern dispatching communications, data transmission for the management of energy infrastructure, communication with smart meters, management of technical assets, or operation of terminals for managing the work of electric meters in the field,” the company confirmed.
„Efforts to ensure an adequate level of reliability and quality of energy supply are moving towards increasing digitalisation and process automation. The multi – service LTE450 network – by providing modern dedicated communication channels – will make it possible to increase the safety, efficiency and effectiveness of the energy system where PGE Dysrybucja works,” the press release said.
The PGE distribution and Ericsson agreement provides for the delivery and deployment of RAN (Radio Access Network) radio components in the new LTE450 network. These are transmitting and receiving devices and antennas for making contact in this band, which is dedicated to the power industry. Basic services of this type are to be implemented in 2024-25. The agreement provides for the implementation and maintenance of infrastructure until 2033.
More is to come. „At the same time the key tenders for CORE central components and RAN radio components have been completed by PGE, the LTE450 program is continuing advanced work to resolve PZP public tenders and select contractors for other components of the LTE450 network – including those related mostly to: purchase and implementation of dedicated power systems with emergency support, purchase and implementation of teletransmission equipment, or lease surfaces on foreign antenna towers to complement the grid of PGE’s own facilities. The modernization of PGE’s own telecommunications towers is also underway, as a next step after comprehensive inventories and technical expertise of the facilities have already been carried out,” the press release said.
Secure communications in the energy sector may be of particular importance after a series of incidents that followed the sabotage of the 2022 Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines. Various elements of critical infrastructure, including energy, experienced disruptions for unexplained reasons.
Polska Grupa Energetyczna / Wojciech Jakóbik