New $75 million 5G facility opens in Cheyenne

CHEYENNE (WNE)  — In January, DISH Network, a subsidiary of Echo-Star, announced it would invest a $50 million federal grant to establish the Open RAN Center for Integration and Deployment in Cheyenne.

Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce Sarah Morris said the goal of this fund is to maximize U.S. economic and national security. In total, the fund makes $1.5 billion available to build and sustain a network of open, interoperable and standards- based networks.

“It matters because the U.S. is engaged in a high-stakes, must-win competition over critical and emerging technologies with adversarial nations across the globe,” Morris said Wednesday at the opening of the world’s largest 5G Open RAN network facility. “Open RAN networks will drive competition, make our supply chains more secure and lower costs for consumers. They’ll improve resilience and protect our national security.”

This technology allows vendors from across the nation and world to test and validate their Open RAN solutions in the Cheyenne facility against a commercial-grade network. Open RAN is a nonproprietary version of the Radio Access Network (RAN) system that allows interoperation between cellular network equipment provided by different vendors, according to Cisco.

ORCID’s purpose in Cheyenne is to allow participants to test and evaluate individual or multiple network elements to ensure Open RAN interoperability, performance and security from domestic and international vendors. 

EchoStar co-founder and Board Chairman Charlie Ergen said the technology employed at the facility located north of Interstate 80 between the College Drive and Campstool Road exits will help drive innovations in the future.

This story was published on September 19, 2024.