June 25 (Reuters) – Verizon Business has won a contract to build multiple private 5G networks at Thames Freeport, one of Britain’s busiest shipping and logistics centers, the U.S. telecom giant said on Wednesday.
The deal, in partnership with Finland’s Nokia (NOKIA.HE), opens new tab, will see Verizon deploy private 5G networks across multiple industrial sites along the River Thames Estuary, including major ports and Ford’s largest London manufacturing facility.
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Private 5G networks provide dedicated connectivity that avoids the congestion and speed variations of public networks shared by multiple users, enabling advanced industrial applications, such as artificial intelligence (AI).
5G adoption in European ports is still at an early stage. The technology allows ports to handle larger volumes of data needed to run or track cargoes, cranes, drones and industrial sensors.
The companies did not disclose financial details of the agreement, only describing it as supporting a “multibillion-dollar operational transformation” of the region.
Thames Freeport is a 34 km-wide economic corridor established in 2021 as a designated UK “Free Trade Zone”, offering a range of tax incentives and reliefs to businesses as part of efforts to revive the Thames Estuary region.
