Network Energy Saving

Within an increasingly energy-aware society, network operators and equipment vendors have now got the added responsibility, and challenge, to minimize the energy consumption for manufacturing and running today's mobile networks. While major equipment vendors have already, for the last couple of years, been promoting their energy efficient products, the sharp increase in energy prices coupled with the current financial crisis, has encouraged network operators to explore methods for improving their energy efficiency. This is done with the prospect of heavily reducing their operational costs, while also improving their environmental and public image.

This project investigates the various options that network operators have for reducing their current energy consumption, while ensuring no or minimal affect on the quality of service delivered to their customers. The first phase of the project looked at the potential of saving energy through the complete shut down of individual sectors or entire sites. This was done first done on a regular network and then repeated over a real live network.

The project is now looking at the energy saving options in future networks supporting HSPA+ features. The first study will look at the potential energy gains from shutting down capacity enhancing features, such as MIMO, during periods of low network traffic.