CenturyLink Lands $1.6 Billion Contract To Power Interior Dept With Next-Gen Network Services

CenturyLink, with the help of Cisco, will modernize the U.S. Department of Interior's IT infrastructure with secure, next-generation network and cloud services.

CenturyLink was awarded a $1.6 billion task order to modernize the U.S. Department of Interior (DOI) through secure network services.

The contract was awarded to CenturyLink via the General Services Administration’s (GSA) Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions (EIS) program, the telecom giant announced on Friday. CenturyLink competed against eight other vendors for this work.

CenturyLink told CRN that they will be working in partnership with Cisco Systems to fulfill the two-part task order, which includes 11 one-year options that run until 2032.

[Related: CenturyLink Expands Channel Management Team With Solution Provider Superstars]

The new contract could be an opportunity for CenturyLink channel partners. A spokesperson for CenturyLink said that the provider hasn't yet figured out all the vendors and partners it will work with to fulfill the task order.

The first part of the task order will put CenturyLink’s managed core network services team in charge of designing, building, operating, and maintaining the DOI's enterprise network, which will include SD-WAN, a virtual private network, and private line and ethernet transport services. CenturyLink will also provide managed security services, including Managed Trusted Internet Protocol Services (MTIPS) and zero-trust networking services that meet the federal government’s security requirements, according to Monroe, La.-based CenturyLink.

That second part of the order includes managed access services, secure cloud connectivity, and Wi-Fi, CenturyLink said.

"This award from DOI shows that government agencies are increasingly turning to CenturyLink as their trusted provider to help them with their IT modernization efforts so they can focus on their mission," said David Young, CenturyLink's senior vice president of public sector who joined the company in October, in a statement.

The Interior Department employs more than 65,000 people and has operations in 2,400 locations.

CenturyLink in 2019 reorganized its public sector group to combine Federal, state and local government, research and education and public safety into a single organization. The carrier said it created the new public sector group to help key public sector areas modernize their IT infrastructures, combine process best practices and promote lifecycle management.