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Many telecom companies are now exploring multiple sources of renewable energy, like solar, wind, biofuels, etc. A lot many are going with choices like green wireless networking equipment.

A recent study made by Bell Labs says that ICT networks have talhe potential to be 1,000 times more efficient than they are. ICT solutions have the potential to reduce by a factor of five the sector's own emissions. This is equivalent to 7.8 GTn CO2, or 15% of the total world emissions predicted by 2020, as per Smart 2020 Report.

Other countries have started getting huge outputs from their stakes in renewable energy. By 2010, five solar thermal electricity generators in the Australian desert will produce enough electricity for a million homes.

The operating expenditure of a network company is spent on electricity and is more than half of the total budget of the business, according to Ericsson. The proportion of money spent in BTS and other infrastructure tends to be higher or lower depending on the location of the infrastructure. This necessity to meet the spiking energy prices and also to contribute a bit in the development of the environment has made telecom companies look for alternative sources of energy.

The DoT also started offering financial support from the USO to telecom players using renewable sources of energy. This move by the government itself speaks volumes about the seriousness with which the alternative sources of energy are being looked at by the authorities at all levels.

Exploring alternative sources of energy is not only imperative now but is also seen as a viable option that can help with a cleaner and greener environment and also generate job opportunities in the rural part of the country.

In India, More than 80,000 villages do not even have a grid electricity pole anywhere near. Supplying power to these areas still remains a challenge for telecom companies.

Contemplations
Gurdeep Singh, COO, Aircel says, "Going green has become the keyword for telecom companies as they now realize their side of responsibilities."

The Chinese network vendor, Huawei, which is deploying WiMax based broadband infrastructure in 1,000 blocks for BSNL is exploring low power consumption alternatives. It made various infrastructural deployments harnessing the energy from sources such as solar and wind power.

Huawei also made a meaningful research where it researched the 'green' energy sources to power rural network. It analyzed the environmental conditions and came up with a roadmap where different forms of alternative sources of energy like solar and wind can be combined to power rural networks. The research proposed to save 8,760 kWh electricity and decrease 11 tons carbon dioxide releases per site per year.

It is yet to be seen that 'green' just doesn't remain a marketing differentiator, but actually becomes a compulsory ingredient of all the equipments, products that are rolled out by telecom operators.

According to Wang Jianzhou, CEO, China Mobile,"We leverage the strength of mobile communications services to benefit the society, and help our customers and communities to reduce carbon emission."

Concerns
There are many challenges which telcos are facing in their ambitious plans to go green.

Philippe Keryer, executive VP & president, carrier products group, Alcatel-Lucent says, "In today's world, exploring alternative sources has become a part of the corporate social responsibility also. We need to maximize our energy efficiency by adopting the best eco-compatible methods."

According to Trai, with urban teledensity reaching 102.79 at the end of September 2009, the new focus area for operators is rural area. The power needed for base stations will have to be managed.

Atul Chaturvedi, COO, Idea Cellular explains, "Scalability, reliability, contiguity and economy are the only challenges. Industry must promote focused R&D for development of these resources to reap benefits."

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