Huawei, GP to Deploy Solar Powered BTS

by Hamidur on Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Huawei, a leader in providing next-generation telecommunications network solutions for operators around the world, on Monday announced that it has been selected by GrameenPhone (GP), a subsidiary of Telenor, to deploy Bangladesh's first solar-powered base transceiver stations (BTS).

Huawei will install its fourth-generation base stations, using a solar and diesel generator hybrid power solution to provide mobile connectivity in rural areas. The base stations will primarily be powered by harnessing solar energy without having to be linked to an electricity grid. The diesel generator will be used as a backup.

"As Bangladesh's key telecom operator and a responsible corporate citizen, GP is committed to investing in green mobile network," said Oddvar Hesjedal, Chief Executive Officer of GP. "Huawei's competitive green power solution helps us utilize renewable energy and reduce our CO2 emissions while providing even better broadband services to our customers."

Once deployed, the new system will improve GP's network performance by preventing service interruption, a previously persistent challenge in Bangladesh due to power instability. It will also lower fuel consumption and CO2 emissions, and reduce the cost of refuelling and site visits, thereby lowering GP's total cost of ownership. These savings will offset GP's capital investment in just two-to-three years.

"We are delighted to be the main provider for GP's solar powered BTS project," Tony Zhang, President of Huawei Bangladesh, said. "As a responsible corporate citizen, Huawei is actively committed to environment protection and the sustainable development of local societies. Green technology is one of Huawei's most important strategies and we will continue to pursue cutting-edge, cost-lowering green solutions for all of our operator customers in Bangladesh and around the world."

Huawei has developed a series of end-to-end green solutions for wireless broadband networks, using a combination of solar energy, wind power and diesel fuel. These innovative solutions aim to assist operators optimize energy efficiency, maximize their return on investment, fulfill their social responsibilities, significantly reduce the TCO in the product life cycle and enhance market competitiveness.

To date, Huawei's green solutions have been adopted by leading telecom operators around the world, including Vodafone, Warid, China Mobile, etc.

Oddvar Hesjedal, CEO of GP and Tony Zhang CEO of Huawei Bangladesh warmly reaffirm their strategic partnership at the signing ceremony to ink the solar-powered base transceiver station agreement.