Private Networks for Industrial Operations
At the Olimpiadinsky mining and processing plant in Krasnoyarsk Region, part of Polyus, operators have deployed a hybrid wireless communications network. The new communications layer covers the entire mining complex and supports more than 400 pieces of open-pit equipment.
Russia’s largest gold producer, Polyus, together with Beeline Business, integrated a private LTE network with the existing infrastructure of Russian developer Infinet Wireless. The new network operates within a unified information environment. The previously deployed Infinet network has been retained as a backup layer to ensure fault tolerance for industrial communications. The results of the joint project were presented during the TsIPR-2026 conference, held May 18-21 in Nizhny Novgorod.
According to industry experts, the project offers a clear demonstration of the technical capabilities of private industrial networks. The deployment confirms that such systems have enough capacity to become core infrastructure for mining digitalization. In practice, that means supporting dispatch systems, telemetry, video surveillance, remote equipment control, industrial analytics and future AI-driven services. One major advantage is that Private LTE remains isolated from public mobile networks and is engineered specifically for the operational needs of a particular enterprise.
The entire project is built on equipment developed by Russian vendor Infinet Wireless, which specializes in broadband wireless access systems for corporate and industrial networks. The company’s solutions are already used in more than 130 countries worldwide.
The pLTE architecture was upgraded to improve core-network fault tolerance, optimize switching mechanisms between nodes and maintain stable services during continuous production cycles. The resulting network is considered one of the largest and most technologically mature industrial deployments of its kind.
Mining Operations Next in Line
At the conference, participants discussed plans to rapidly scale Private LTE and 5G-Ready networks across open-pit mines, processing plants, underground operations, oil and gas sites and metallurgical facilities. As of November 2025, Russia had deployed 102 commercial Private LTE networks. That indicates the technology has already moved beyond pilot programs into full industrial implementation.
Polyus representatives are also planning broader use of the hybrid network. The platform could become the foundation for more advanced digital systems, including automated mine-equipment control, predictive analytics, industrial-safety monitoring, video surveillance, AI-based production analytics and remote equipment management.
Communications outages are critical for both mining operations and worker safety – which is why the withdrawal of some foreign suppliers hit Russia’s extractive sector particularly hard. The Olimpiadinsky deployment demonstrates that the needs of Russian industrial operators can now be met domestically.
Private LTE in Practice
Similar projects are already underway in other parts of Russia. Kovdor GOK, the city-forming enterprise in Kovdor, Murmansk Region, and one of the leading industrial assets in Russia’s Arctic zone, also operates a pLTE network. The facility, which belongs to mineral and chemical producer EuroChem, uses the network to support telemetry, remote control of machinery, transportation systems and drilling-and-blasting operations, along with video transmission to dispatch centers and broader IT infrastructure modernization.
One of the earliest examples dates back to 2021, when MegaFon deployed a comparable network at the Elga coal deposit. The site, covering roughly 100,000 hectares, received LTE base stations operating in the 800, 900, 1800 and 2600 MHz bands, enabling communications between remote industrial facilities.
That same year, Private LTE and NB-IoT networks were launched at the Kachkanar deposit in Sverdlovsk Region. Rostelecom and EVRAZ deployed the closed wireless infrastructure based on pLTE and NB-IoT technologies. As a result, eight base stations provided corporate communications across quarry zones and railway lines, while also ensuring radio coverage inside the closed industrial perimeter.
From Point Solutions to Networked Infrastructure
A major opportunity has now opened for Russian suppliers and system integrators. The private industrial-network market has already taken shape, while successful deployments at some of the country’s largest industrial sites are becoming a strong argument for expanding these solutions both domestically and abroad.
The integration of a private network with the infrastructure of a major telecom operator signals that Russia’s mining sector is moving beyond isolated digital projects toward building foundational infrastructure for managed, safe and increasingly automated production.
