Navajo Tribal Utility Strikes Deal with Ceragon for Microwave Solutions

June 18, 2012

Ceragon has won a $4 million dollar contract from the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority (NTUA), to supply microwave backhaul solutions and turnkey services, including installation, project management and commissioning.

The FibeAir IP-10G was chosen to power the Navajo Nation’s wireless backhaul network, which is part of more than a 530-mile network made up of microwave towers and fiber optics. Lester Lee, telecommunications manager, NTUA, told Backhaul Bulletin that they chose Ceragon solutions because they are a direct fit for the NTUA’s technological needs, because of their commitment to fast deployment and fast time to market and because of Ceragon’s experience in deploying high-capacity, reliable wireless networks all over the world.

The NTUA’s project is a result of a federal grant award from the National Telecommunications Infrastructure Administration (NTIA) to NTUA in 2010 to establish broadband connectivity within the Navajo Nation. The contract to Ceragon is partially funded by the federal grant. The backhaul solution that is being installed will benefit the NTUA by providing the inhabitants of the Navajo Nation with much needed high-speed, high-capacity broadband access enabling improvements to education, healthcare and public safety resources, as well as playing an active part in job creation, Ira Palti, Ceragon’s president and CEO, told the Bulletin.

The installation of the network will serve more than 15,000 miles of the 27,000 square miles of the Navajo Nation.