Connecting the Renewable Energy Transition: Millbeck Exhibits at All-Energy 2026

Millbeck is exhibiting at All-Energy 2026 alongside partner Teltonika Networks on stand H58, focused on the cellular connectivity layer underneath the UK's renewable build-out. This article sets out where industrial 4G and 5G connectivity fits in solar, battery storage, EV charging, and substation deployments, and what changes when sites are remote, unmanned, and operating for fifteen years or more.

The Connectivity Layer Behind Net Zero

The UK's renewable energy build-out is, increasingly, a build-out of distributed assets. Utility-scale solar farms in fields with no fixed-line infrastructure. Battery energy storage systems (BESS) co-located with substations. EV chargers scattered across forecourts, car parks, and on-street locations. Grid telemetry pushed further down into the distribution network. Every one of these assets has to report data, accept control, and remain securely reachable, often for the asset's entire operating life.

That is the connectivity layer, and it is where Millbeck fits in. As a UK specialist in industrial cellular IoT hardware and SIMs, our work sits between the energy assets and the platforms that monitor and control them. At All-Energy 2026 in Glasgow on 13 and 14 May, we are on stand H58 with our partner Teltonika Networks to discuss the connectivity decisions that determine whether a renewable energy project runs reliably for two decades or generates support tickets for two decades.

Why Cellular, Why Now

Cellular connectivity has become the default for distributed energy assets for reasons that are practical rather than ideological. Fibre and fixed-line connections are expensive to install at remote sites, slow to provision, and contractually inflexible once in place. Cellular 4G LTE and 5G coverage is now near-universal across the UK, multi-network roaming SIMs remove dependence on any single operator's footprint, and industrial routers are built to operate unattended for years in environments where consumer hardware would fail within months.

For project owners and integrators, the question has shifted from whether to use cellular to how to specify it correctly the first time. Choices made at the design stage, around router selection, SIM type, antenna performance, and remote management, determine the operational cost and reliability of the deployment for its entire life.

Four Verticals, Four Connectivity Profiles

Renewable energy is not a single application. Each vertical places different demands on the connectivity layer.

Utility and Commercial Solar

Solar sites need always-on connectivity for inverter monitoring, performance data, SCADA integration, and remote firmware updates. They are typically rural, often have weak signal at the perimeter, and need to operate unattended through the seasons.

The connectivity requirements: industrial routers rated for wide temperature ranges, external high-gain antennas to compensate for rural signal conditions, multi-network SIMs to avoid single-operator coverage gaps, and remote management so a site fault does not require a truck roll. Power resilience matters too. A router that reboots cleanly after a power dip is worth more than one with a slightly faster modem.

Battery Energy Storage Systems

BESS deployments combine the connectivity needs of a generation asset with the cybersecurity profile of grid-connected infrastructure. They report state of charge, dispatch instructions, market signals, and safety telemetry, often to multiple platforms simultaneously. Latency matters more than it does on a solar farm because BESS assets earn revenue from frequency response and balancing services measured in seconds.

The connectivity requirements: low-latency routing (5G where the use case justifies it), VPN tunnels for secure platform connectivity, dual-SIM failover so a network outage does not take an earning asset offline, and remote management with role-based access for the multiple parties typically involved in BESS operation.

EV Charging Infrastructure

EV chargers sit at an awkward intersection. They are distributed like solar, transactional like retail point-of-sale, and safety-critical like grid equipment. They need to authorise payments, report session data, accept tariff updates, and integrate with back-office platforms, all over connectivity that has to be cheap enough per-unit to make economic sense at fleet scale.

The connectivity requirements: compact routers suitable for installation inside charger enclosures, IoT SIMs with predictable global or UK roaming pricing, secure connectivity to OCPP back-ends, and the ability to bulk-provision and manage estates of hundreds or thousands of chargers without touching each unit individually.

Substations and Grid Telemetry

The traditional grid is being instrumented from the bottom up. Secondary substations, ring main units, and distribution-level monitoring points now need connectivity that did not exist in the original design. Retrofit deployments mean fitting connectivity into spaces and power envelopes that were never planned for it.

The connectivity requirements: routers with serial and digital I/O for legacy protocol conversion, DIN-rail form factors for substation cabinets, secure tunnels to DNO and asset owner platforms, and the ability to handle utility-grade environmental conditions including electromagnetic interference and wide voltage ranges.

What "Mission-Critical" Actually Means at the Connectivity Layer

"Mission-critical" is one of the most overused words in IoT marketing. At the connectivity layer specifically, it translates to a small number of design decisions:

• Failover behaviour: what the router does when its primary connection drops, how long failover takes, and whether it recovers automatically.
• Watchdog and self-healing: the ability to detect a stuck modem or hung connection and recover without site attendance.
• Remote management: the ability to push firmware, change configuration, and diagnose faults without rolling a truck to site.
• Security posture: VPN support, certificate handling, secure boot, and the ability to apply security patches throughout the asset's operating life.
• Supportability: how long the manufacturer supports the product line, the availability of replacement units, and the maturity of the firmware base.

These are not exotic features. They are the difference between a connectivity layer that works for ten years and one that becomes a problem after three.

Millbeck and Teltonika Networks at All-Energy 2026

This is our fourth consecutive year exhibiting at major UK industrial events, and our first at All-Energy. We are on stand H58 with Teltonika Networks, whose industrial cellular routers and Remote Management System (RMS) platform are deployed across thousands of UK renewable energy sites. The stand will have working hardware, live RMS demonstrations, and the team who specify and configure these deployments day to day.

If you are designing connectivity for a renewable energy project, retrofitting an existing estate, or trying to understand why your current deployment is generating support tickets, come and find us. We will be at the SEC in Glasgow on 13 and 14 May 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

What connectivity is best for remote solar farms with weak signal?

A combination of an industrial router with external high-gain antennas (directional or omnidirectional depending on cell tower position), a multi-network roaming SIM to access whichever operator has the strongest signal at site, and remote management for ongoing diagnostics. Site surveys are worth doing properly. Signal at the cabinet is rarely the same as signal at the perimeter fence.

Do battery storage systems need 5G or is 4G enough?

For most current BESS use cases, 4G LTE with good signal and a well-designed network path is sufficient. 5G adds value where latency below 50 milliseconds is genuinely required (frequency response services, fast-acting balancing), where the local 4G network is congested, or where the asset's revenue model depends on millisecond-level dispatch. 5G NSA is widely available; 5G SA and RedCap are emerging for low-power IoT use cases.

How do you manage connectivity across hundreds of EV chargers?

Through a remote management platform that lets you provision, monitor, configure, and troubleshoot the connectivity layer at scale. Teltonika RMS is one such platform; there are others. The key capabilities are bulk firmware deployment, configuration templating, fleet-wide health monitoring, and remote terminal access for diagnostics. Without this, an estate of a few hundred chargers becomes operationally unsustainable.

Can cellular routers be used in substation environments?

Yes, but specification matters. Substation deployments typically need DIN-rail mounting, wide DC voltage input, extended operating temperature ranges, EMC compliance appropriate to the environment, and often serial or digital I/O for legacy protocol integration. Not every industrial router meets all of these requirements. We can advise on suitable models case by case.

What is the role of multi-network IoT SIMs in renewable energy projects?

Multi-network SIMs (sometimes called UK roaming or multi-IMSI SIMs) allow a device to attach to whichever operator has the best signal at site, rather than being locked to a single network. For renewable energy sites, which are often in rural or signal-marginal locations, this typically converts a problematic deployment into a reliable one. It also provides operator-level resilience: if one network has an outage, the device fails over to another.

How long should I expect a cellular router deployment to last?

Industrial cellular routers from the major manufacturers typically have hardware lifespans of seven to ten years and firmware support periods of five to seven years. Network generation transitions (the 2G and 3G sunsets, eventually 4G) will force replacement cycles independent of hardware longevity. Specifying for 4G LTE Cat 4 or Cat 6 in 2026 gives a long runway; specifying for 5G NSA gives longer still where the use case warrants the cost.

Where can I see Millbeck at All-Energy 2026?

Stand H58 at the SEC, Glasgow, on 13 and 14 May 2026. We are exhibiting with our partner Teltonika Networks. The team includes technical specialists who can discuss specific project requirements on the stand.