Chapter 7: Green Telecom

Introduction

•    With the introduction of 5G technology, it is anticipated that the number of towers, small cells, and BTS (or equivalent electronics) would significantly increase, which will accelerate GHG and carbon emissions and have a knock-on effect on global warming.
•    In order to lessen the telecom industry's negative impact on the ecosystem as a whole and to combat the effects of global warming, steps must be taken to reduce energy consumption and move towards renewable energy sources. Telecom towers account for 65-70% of the energy used by telecom networks.

India Telecom Market

•    India's telecom market is the second-largest in the world in terms of subscriptions, and it is known for having some of the lowest broadband prices worldwide. 
•    According to the most recent TRAI report, as of May 31, 2022, India has 1.15 billion mobile subscriptions and about 800 million broadband connections, the majority of which were made using small cells and telecom towers and were used by mobile devices.

Problem with Telecom Towers:

•    More than 7 lakh telecom towers are dispersed across the country, and they are all powered by diesel generator sets, which produce greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change. This issue is particularly serious in remote and hilly areas, where DG sets are more common.
•    On the two key fronts, action must be made right away to lessen the telecom sector's negative impact on the ecosystem as a whole: 
•    With the general goal of reducing power requirements, reducing the energy consumption of electronics, creating eco-friendly electronics, buildings, consumables, and effective network planning are all being implemented. In addition, a shift to renewable energy sources is being made in order to combat the consequences of global warming.

Reducing the Energy Consumption:

•    Use of 5G Technologies: Using 5G instead of all current networks will save energy because it uses network energy more effectively than 4G and 3G networks. 
•    In order to reduce energy waste, new strategies are required for traditional networks, which only employ 15-20% of their total energy for data delivery.

Usage of end-to-end intelligent power systems:

•     Telecom service providers may be able to transition to fully intelligent power systems by combining cloud infrastructure with AI in mobile networks.
•    Move towards renewable energy sources
•    65-70% of the energy used by telecom networks is used by telecom towers.
•    India's installed capacity for renewable energy was fourth in the world as of 2020, followed by solar power in fifth place and wind power in fourth.

Solar Power:

•    A growing number of industries are using solar power.
•    Today, a hybrid of solar panels and DG sets combination is becoming more and more popular throughout India, especially in plane surfaces. The DG sets can be substituted with solar energy driven battery backup system.
•    Wind energy is fairly expensive, although new research has allowed it to lower its costs. It is common in mountainous and coastal places.
•    A hybrid energy source using both solar and wind power is gaining popularity.

Geothermal Power

•    This method can be used to power towers in remote and hilly areas since the heat from below the soil is used to heat the water and operate the turbine to produce electricity.

Energy Cells

•    Currently expensive, it uses hydrogen and oxygen to generate heat and power. Once hydrogen production becomes economical, fuel cell utilisation will be more cost-effective.

Extra Sources

•    Others that can be exploited as renewable energy sources include tidal, waves, and ocean currents.
•    Obstacles to the Use of Renewable Energy
•    The cost of using renewable energy is higher than that of using traditional energy.
•    Its installation comes with a larger initial capital expense.
•    Consumer knowledge of the importance of renewable energy sources is low.
•    India's markets must be developed and financial, legal, regulatory, and organisational obstacles must be removed before renewable energy technology may be used there.

Conclusion

•    In India, telecom towers will significantly increase as a result of the 5G revolution. India must make the telecom towers green as soon as possible if it is to combat climate change.