The True Cost of Providing Energy to Telecom Towers in India
The True Cost of Providing Energy to Telecom Towers in India
Whitepaper
Contents
Introduction .......................................................................................... 2 A typical telecom tower site..................................................................... 3 Telecom site operating conditions ............................................................ 3 Case study: 3 BTS Site with 12 hours of electrical grid supply ..................... 4 Cost calculations: CAPEX and OPEX calculations ...................................... 5 CAPEX Calculations: .......................................................................... 5 OPEX Calculations: ........................................................................... 5 Plausible additions ................................................................................ 7 Energy costs at various sites ................................................................ 8 The effects of diesel price increase ........................................................... 8 Conclusions ........................................................................................... 9
1
Introduction
Unreliable electrical grid supply is one of the biggest challenges faced by the rapidly growing telecom tower industry in India. Today, on average, 70 percent of the approximately 400,000 mobile towers in India face electrical grid outages in excess of 8 hours a day. Telecom tower operators currently use diesel generators, batteries, and a variety of power management equipment to address the demand-supply gap. The resulting energy costs alone account for 25 percent of the total network operating costs 1, affecting the profitability of the operators.
Exhibit 1: Average per day grid availability by region in India2
25
Grid Availability per day (hrs)
21.5 20 19.1 18.9 19.1 17.2 13.8
20.7 18.5 19.5
20.7 18.1
19.3 18.3 16.7 13.8
20.3
15
13.8
12.7
10.4 8.8
10 7.4 5 7.2
Whitepaper
Contents
Introduction .......................................................................................... 2 A typical telecom tower site..................................................................... 3 Telecom site operating conditions ............................................................ 3 Case study: 3 BTS Site with 12 hours of electrical grid supply ..................... 4 Cost calculations: CAPEX and OPEX calculations ...................................... 5 CAPEX Calculations: .......................................................................... 5 OPEX Calculations: ........................................................................... 5 Plausible additions ................................................................................ 7 Energy costs at various sites ................................................................ 8 The effects of diesel price increase ........................................................... 8 Conclusions ........................................................................................... 9
1
Introduction
Unreliable electrical grid supply is one of the biggest challenges faced by the rapidly growing telecom tower industry in India. Today, on average, 70 percent of the approximately 400,000 mobile towers in India face electrical grid outages in excess of 8 hours a day. Telecom tower operators currently use diesel generators, batteries, and a variety of power management equipment to address the demand-supply gap. The resulting energy costs alone account for 25 percent of the total network operating costs 1, affecting the profitability of the operators.
Exhibit 1: Average per day grid availability by region in India2
25
Grid Availability per day (hrs)
21.5 20 19.1 18.9 19.1 17.2 13.8
20.7 18.5 19.5
20.7 18.1
19.3 18.3 16.7 13.8
20.3
15
13.8
12.7
10.4 8.8
10 7.4 5 7.2