4G TIM in the Countryside

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TIM's 4G in the Countryside project was born from the convergence of business vision and the purpose of bringing quality connectivity to the Brazilian countryside, enabling digitalization and more sustainable business models. The agricultural sector represents 23.21% of Brazil's GDP and is currently one of the segments that contributes most to the country's exports and trade balance. In recent years, Brazil has established itself as the world's largest exporter of corn, soybeans, and sugar. Broad, high-quality coverage in Brazilian agriculture, in addition to generating direct impacts and contributing to a more efficient and sustainable model of agricultural production, also benefits the surrounding population, allowing connectivity to reach public schools, health units, and other facilities, enabling digital inclusion and the development of rural communities. TIM's 4G in the Countryside is a rural transformation platform that aims to integrate technology, sustainability, and inclusion. With measurable results, the project is consolidating itself as a case study of innovation and a benchmark in leadership and partnership between the telecommunications sector and Brazilian agribusiness. Today, TIM already serves more than 60 agribusiness groups, including São Martinho, Belém Bioenergia, BP Bunge Bioenergia, Citrosuco, Amaggi, Agropalma, and Adecoagro, covering 23 million hectares across the country.

From disconnected countryside to digital agriculture: connectivity for productivity and sustainability in rural Brazil.

Methodology

The initiative utilizes the same 700 MHz LTE 4G technology already installed in cities, guaranteeing compatibility and world-class performance. Furthermore, the network is prepared for NB-IoT (Narrow Band Internet of Things), a technology that allows the connection of sensors and devices with low energy consumption, expanding the possibilities for automation and monitoring in the field. The project offers farmers, in addition to connectivity itself, various integrated solutions through technological partnerships, providing them with easier communication with clients and suppliers, access to new precision agriculture and automation technologies, solutions for processing and remote monitoring of field data (terrain, machinery and implements, animals and labor), time savings, competitiveness and productivity with increased crop and agricultural product quality and reduced costs. The TIM 4G in the Field project seeks to go beyond connectivity. The project paves the way for a cycle of developing business models in Brazilian agribusiness that boost and balance productivity, sustainability, and innovation. Connectivity gives rise to a digital infrastructure that integrates people, machines, and sensors, transforming data into information that guides more assertive and sustainable decisions. In the field, each installed tower becomes a point of transformation, where technology enhances work, brings producers closer to the market, and creates opportunities for new generations.

From connectivity to agricultural intelligence: technology that transforms data into decisions and sustainability in the field.

Results

With the goal of demonstrating how connectivity increases productivity in the field, while contributing to a more sustainable business model, even in a region already recognized for its high yields harvest after harvest, a study was conducted by Agricef and Unicamp. The analysis was structured around three main pillars: Agricultural Efficiency, Economic Viability, and Sustainability. In the 22/23 harvest, the Connected Farm, a project developed in partnership with Case IH, achieved a total production of 12,925 tons, being 18% more productive than the previous harvest and 13.4% above the national average. In a comparison with another farm in the same region, but without connectivity, and isolating other factors, it was found that connectivity was responsible for an increase of 3.5% in productivity — the equivalent of 2.35 more sacks of soybeans per hectare in an area of 3,200 hectares. Operational efficiency also showed significant gains. Three harvesters analyzed across two harvests showed that, with connectivity, there was a reduction of 5.7% in idle engine time and an increase of 4.2% in effective working time, resulting in three fewer days in the harvest window. Furthermore, real-time machine management provided fuel savings of 25%, representing over R$ 300,000 in savings in the 22/23 harvest. Under the sustainability pillar, the study indicated a reduction of 12.5 kg of CO₂ equivalent per ton of soybeans produced, corresponding to a decrease of 10% in emission intensity. The TIM 4G in the Field program has demonstrated how technology can be a vector and meeting point between productivity, transformation, and social, environmental, and climate responsibility, consolidating connectivity as a fundamental element for the development of more sustainable business models.

Technology that is planted, efficiency that is harvested: more productivity, less carbon, greater profitability.

Supporting Material

Agriculture
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