RF Spectrum - What’s In Your Portfolio?

I like to think of RF spectrum and technology for utilities as a portfolio of potential solutions. As a utility, you want a big portfolio so you have as many options as possible to enable you to make the best decision for spectrum and technology for your utility. In most cases, the best solution for one utility is not necessarily the best solution for another.

So, what's in that portfolio to choose from?

Today, we dive into the spectrum portfolio and look at what spectrum bands are available for utilities. Spectrum is the foundation for utilities to build the wireless networks utilities use to underpin grid modernization. Selecting the right spectrum for a utility's geography, morphology, service area, and use cases is critical in building a reliable network.

When I started out as a young telecommunications engineer, spectrum was pretty simple - you went to the FCC, paid $50 and leased a channel for 10 years (more or less - it was slightly more complicated). Since 1993, the FCC has auctioned spectrum and spectrum has become very competitive with the most desirable spectrum being purchased by commercial providers for billions of dollars. So, where does that leave utilities? For many years that left utilities building their networks that support the electric grid with less than optimal spectrum.

However, in recent years, utilities have had access to a variety of spectrum bands from low frequencies to higher frequencies, from narrowband to broadband. All of these options come with a price (i.e. narrowband spectrum is less costly than broadband spectrum) and a variety of technologies that are supported, from proprietary to standards such as LTE.

What is narrowband spectrum? What is wideband spectrum? What is broadband spectrum? What spectrum bands do utilities have access to? This is a high level overview of the utility spectrum portfolio of RF spectrum in the United States (all countries are different). There are a variety of spectrum owners and a variety of manufacturers that make equipment for these bands. If you'd like more information on spectrum, spectrum owners, and technology providers, please contact me.

Selecting the right spectrum for your utility network is one of the most important (and possibly most expensive) decisions you will make. It is foundational to building a reliable communications network to support your utility grid.