Future-proofing utility communications: The case for multi-carrier SIMs

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Future-proofing utility communications: The case for multi-carrier SIMs

Every day, the utility sector moves toward a more connected, data-driven environment. Smart meters stand as a foundational element of this transition — but only if they remain reliable in the long term. However, the reliability of these devices is only as strong as their connection. Early smart meters often relied on single-carrier SIM cards, […]

Early smart meters often relied on single-carrier SIM cards, which left them vulnerable to cellular outages and coverage gaps that could disrupt the flow of essential data. For critical infrastructure, that’s a risk utilities cannot afford.

To solve this, leading original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are now integrating multi-carrier eSIMs. This modern approach ensures resilient, long-lasting connectivity that allows a smart meter to switch between networks to maintain a connection automatically. It’s the key to delivering the dependable performance utilities require from devices expected to last 15 to 20 years in the field.

Why smart meter OEMs have hesitated to go multi-carrier

Despite the advantages of multi-carrier connectivity, many OEMs have approached multi-IMSI SIM technologies with caution. Varying concerns have been responsible for slowing adoption:

Battery drain during network switching. Earlier SIM designs consumed significant power when scanning and switching networks, shortening the device’s battery life — an unacceptable trade-off for meters expected to last 15–20 years.
Cost premiums. Multi-carrier SIMs once came with higher costs compared to single-carrier versions, making them harder to justify at scale.
Loss of control. Some OEMs with preferred carrier relationships worried that switching to a multi-carrier SIM could impact those arrangements.
Regulatory complexity. Permanent roaming restrictions and compliance requirements complicated global rollouts.

However, modern eSIM technology has effectively resolved these past challenges and paved the way for wider adoption.

The advantages of a modern multi-carrier approach

For smart gas and water meters, it isn’t just the ability to connect to multiple networks that matters — it’s the ability to do so automatically and efficiently, with minimal power consumption and no need to download profiles that could drain the battery. Modern multi-carrier SIMs are preloaded with both the carrier and multi-IMSI profiles, allowing them to switch seamlessly between networks while preserving the long battery life these devices demand. They offer:

Built-in resilience

Multiple network identities on a single SIM enable automatic failover to an alternative identity if the primary carrier becomes unavailable, restoring connectivity instantly without manual intervention or excess power draw.

“More and more, smart meters are being treated as critical infrastructure,” says Rupa Datta, Vice President of Product, IoT Connected Services at Semtech, a provider of connectivity solutions for manufacturers. “To ensure that essential data is transmitted accurately and efficiently, battery-constrained devices need to wake up and find a network quickly. With Semtech’s preloaded multi-carrier eSIM, OEMs can have all three US networks in one SIM, with multiple paths to each. If one path fails, the device prompts the SIM to automatically switch to the next available network — so utilities get resilience built in from day one.”

Streamlined manufacturing

Instead of producing and testing separate SKUs for each MNO, manufacturers can now standardize on a single preloaded SIM that supports multiple networks out of the box. This reduces the number of SKUs, lowering production costs and accelerating production cycles. The result is a faster time to market and a leaner supply chain operation.

Designed compliance

Modern multi-carrier solutions are intentionally designed with regulatory compliance in mind and can overcome permanent roaming restrictions globally by preloading MNO profiles on eSIM-enabled solutions. Combining MNO profiles along with a multi-IMSI profile enables compatibility with regional carriers while also adhering to permanent roaming regulations. This helps OEMs navigate compliance requirements while ensuring devices can be deployed worldwide without compromising performance or battery efficiency.

Taken together, these advantages make Semtech’s preloaded multi-carrier eSIMs superior to other approaches, such as those with limited roaming agreements. Instead, multi-carrier eSIMs deliver true end-to-end resilience and global scalability without adding complexity or draining device power.

Future-proofing smart meters: a business case

Multi-carrier eSIMs are increasingly the most logical choice for OEMs seeking to produce smart devices that work seamlessly with the next generation of utility systems and technology for several reasons:

Lower total cost of ownership

Although multi-carrier SIMs may carry a modest upfront premium, the total lifecycle savings can be substantial.

“From the OEM perspective, a multi-carrier eSIM significantly decreases total cost of ownership,” says Datta. “Instead of creating and stocking multiple SKUs for different carriers, managing separate certifications and sending technicians out with multiple options, manufacturers can streamline everything into one global SIM. That drives efficiencies not just in manufacturing, but across the entire device lifecycle.”

Long battery life

One of the most persistent myths about multi-carrier SIMs is that they drain battery life. However, modern multi-carrier eSIM technology utilizes low-power profiles specifically designed for use in IoT devices, with both multi-IMSI and MNO profiles preloaded, eliminating the need for power-consuming, over-the-air downloads. This allows for 15 to 20 years of operation, aligning well with utility procurement cycles so that devices can remain operational without the need for costly mid-life battery replacements.

Built for tomorrow’s utility operation

Connectivity standards are evolving, particularly as eUICC standards move from SGP.02 toward SGP.32. Multi-carrier eSIMs that comply with these standards now enable manufacturers to produce devices that remain compliant, resilient and adaptable in an ever-evolving connectivity landscape.

The clear choice for future-ready devices

As utilities modernize their infrastructure, the demand for uninterrupted data and absolute reliability has become non-negotiable. Smart meter OEMs that adopt low-power, preloaded multi-carrier eSIM technology can solve today’s deployment challenges while delivering the long battery life and resilience their customers demand. By simplifying manufacturing and embedding future-ready technology from Day One, manufacturers can secure a critical competitive advantage in an often-changing market.

Learn more about incorporating multi-carrier eSIMs into your smart meter product at Semtech.

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Join our daily and weekly newsletters for the latest updates and exclusive content on industry-leading AI coverage. Learn More OpenAI has taken a more aggressive approach to red teaming than its AI competitors, demonstrating its security teams’ advanced capabilities in two areas: multi-step reinforcement and external red teaming. OpenAI recently released two papers that set a new competitive standard for improving the quality, reliability and safety of AI models in these two techniques and more. The first paper, “OpenAI’s Approach to External Red Teaming for AI Models and Systems,” reports that specialized teams outside the company have proven effective in uncovering vulnerabilities that might otherwise have made it into a released model because in-house testing techniques may have missed them. In the second paper, “Diverse and Effective Red Teaming with Auto-Generated Rewards and Multi-Step Reinforcement Learning,” OpenAI introduces an automated framework that relies on iterative reinforcement learning to generate a broad spectrum of novel, wide-ranging attacks. Going all-in on red teaming pays practical, competitive dividends It’s encouraging to see competitive intensity in red teaming growing among AI companies. When Anthropic released its AI red team guidelines in June of last year, it joined AI providers including Google, Microsoft, Nvidia, OpenAI, and even the U.S.’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), which all had released red teaming frameworks. Investing heavily in red teaming yields tangible benefits for security leaders in any organization. OpenAI’s paper on external red teaming provides a detailed analysis of how the company strives to create specialized external teams that include cybersecurity and subject matter experts. The goal is to see if knowledgeable external teams can defeat models’ security perimeters and find gaps in their security, biases and controls that prompt-based testing couldn’t find. What makes OpenAI’s recent papers noteworthy is how well they define using human-in-the-middle