Africa should be working towards zero-power networking in telecommunications.
This is according to Azfar Aslam, senior director and partner of Bell Labs Consulting EMEA, talking on the side-lines of the Southern Africa Telecommunication Networks and Applications Conference (SATNAC) in Hermanus, Western Cape.
Aslam said as of 2013, global telecommunications networks consumed 69GW of energy, which is effectively the "power consumption of 12 New York cities". This is unsustainable and is adding to end costs for consumers, according to Aslam.
"The idea is that if we can find a way of developing equipment in a way that is so energy-efficient that it can be managed through renewable energy, then you don't need to rely on power from the electrical grid."
This would see telecommunications equipment becoming completely independent of the power grid by using natural resources like solar or wind power.
"We want to change the game; we don't want step change, which is not sufficient. We want to deliver infinite information at zero-power."
He noted the power consumption of global telecoms networks is increasing each year, even though the equipment efficiency is improving, which should technically bring costs down. However, power-related operational expenditure (opex) is now a significant item on telcos' balance sheets, leading to mobile service providers' bills going up globally.
"So we are talking about how to reduce that opex and if there are means to do that, why wouldn't you do it?" asked Aslam.
"We believe we can improve energy-efficiency in the mobile networking arena by a factor of 10 000. This could drive a 98% reduction in net energy consumption in the end-to-end network."
Green reality
Bell Labs has designed equipment that can provide green power to networks. "An example is renewable powered cells ? think of it as a mobile base station in a box ? and it will have its own power supply from solar power, working completely off the grid. So that is the vision we are trying to work towards."
He said this is not a vision but rather a workable plan that can be put into action if the telecommunications industry buys into it.
"In 2010, this was a vision but now it's a reality. If you look at the results that were published during the Greentouch conference in June, they show it is no longer just a vision, the techniques have already been identified to achieve the vision. Now, the next phase over the next five years is about implementing those techniques in the most cost-effective ways."
Aslam said there are three big issues in Africa: power is one, but going hand-in-hand are the issues of limited access to networks for those who need services, and affordability.
"These are all important but power is the number one issue because without power, even if you want to deliver services to those who do not have, you may not be able to."
Daniel Jaeger, Alcatel-Lucent VP for Africa, agrees power is not a standalone issue.
"They work together. Reduced power consumption can increase the roll-out of providers to rural areas; it makes it much easier for an operator to reach areas that are not covered today. It also affects affordability because the cost of power will go down and therefore allow people who could not afford the service today to afford the service tomorrow," noted Jaeger.
But for this new model to work, it will take an industry-wide decision to embrace green technology in the sector.
"The industry has to come together and decide for itself if that is the direction it wants to go into, which is more energy-efficient. You cannot develop equipment only for one large service provider; it has to be an industry-wide decision. Collectively everyone comes together and says this is the way to go, otherwise it doesn't happen."
Bell Labs is the research and development subsidiary of Alcatel-Lucent.
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