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Fixed wireless and broadband provider Connexin, which is in the process of being acquired by CityFibre (here), has today revealed that their existing Long Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN) network has already connected 250,000 smart water meters across parts of the UK.
Fixed wireless LoRa networks harness only a small slice of lower frequency radio spectrum (usually in the sub-1GHz bands) in order to support relatively slow, but extremely low power, data connections. Such networks tend to run at sub-Megabit speeds (often under 0.05Mbps, but some variants can handle several Megabits), which makes them ideal for linking Internet of Things (IoT) style sensors.
Over the past year or two Connexin has secured major contracts with several leading UK water suppliers – including Northumbrian Water, Essex & Suffolk Water, Yorkshire Water, and Severn Trent Water – to deliver smart water metering using their wireless network.
The smart meters deliver near real-time data, enabling residents and businesses to track water usage, cut bills, and support initiatives to reduce leakage from the water network. Smart-sensor technology can also aid in flood prevention, minimise damage and emergency response costs, optimise maintenance to lower operational spending, and strengthen climate resilience and public safety with targeted infrastructure insights.
This technology can also enable use cases such as smarter waste management by optimising collection routes and reducing unnecessary trips, improve road safety in colder weather through intelligent gritting that ensures roads are treated where and when they need it, deliver energy savings with smart street lighting that adjusts brightness while maintaining safety and visibility, and support smart transport solutions that help reduce congestion and emissions across towns and cities.
Dan Preece, VP of Water & Utilities at Connexin, said:
“Water is a precious resource which needs to be protected. Smart city solutions are essential for updating our utilities to meet modern needs and to make them more sustainable – by connecting real-world systems to digital intelligence, we enable real-time, insight-driven decision-making and driving integrated regional transformation.”
Connexin’s LoRaWAN® IoT network now connects “almost” 250,000 meters across the country and they have a plan to connect the whole of the UK. Currently compulsory in water-stressed regions, smart metering is expected to become mandatory nationwide following recommendations from the Cunliffe Review, published in July 2025.