IDT Spectrum has received approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to operate 46 WiMAX base stations, operating in the 3.65 GHz band, across Texas, Louisiana and Colorado. The company plans to offer WiMAX-based communication services to headquarters and regional offices of oil and gas exploration and services firms, enabling ‘cost effective, virtual connections with their rigs and platforms in the field.’ The area covered by the recent FCC approvals includes approximately 350 oil rigs.
IDT Spectrum CEO Mike Rapaport said, ‘Real-time streaming of well head data, VoIP, fax services, video surveillance and other types of information from the rigs and platforms can be transferred over a WiMAX network to onshore teams for monitoring and analysis. In the Gulf and on the mainland, enhanced communications between the on-site crew and off-site technicians are a key productivity driver.’
IDT Spectrum holds over 1,250 FCC licenses of fixed wireless spectrum including a nationwide 3.65 GHz license. The company leases spectrum for point-to-point links and large geographic areas of coverage. IDT Spectrum parent, IDT Corp., a telecommunications and energy holding company, is also engaged, through an affiliate, in an oil shale project in Western Colorado. WiMax promises a 70Mbit/s bandwidth over tens of kilometers.
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