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Kenya: Safaricom's Solar And Wind Energy Solutions Earn Praise
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Business Daily (Nairobi)
19 May 2008
Posted to the web 20 May 2008
Nairobi
A model adopted by Safaricom to power its base stations using small wind turbines and solar systems will help ensure telecommunication reaches Africa's remotest regions.
Telecommunications industry analysts meeting in Cairo said low access to electricity was one of the greatest impediments to such projects.
"Only four per cent of Africa has electricity and most base stations are fuel run yet diesel prices are up ... the costs are getting higher and higher for operators," said Mr Tom Phillips of the Global Mobile Association, the industry body of GSM service providers.
Commitments so far made by the industry indicate that there is enough money to cover 90 per cent of the continent by the year 2012, but this would only happen when innovative ways are found to get electricity to rural areas.
Latest data from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) on telecommunications indicators in Africa show that only about one out of every five Africans have access to electricity.
The situation is worse in sub-Saharan Africa where the population with access to electricity is only eight per cent.
And where there is electricity, power failures are frequent, thus raising costs for operators and consumers.
Oil prices
ITU statistics also show that Africa uses 30 million litres of diesel every year to power mobile base stations.
Considering rising oil prices, the ITU says operating costs go up, the environment is negatively affected and there is an increased risk of fuel and generator theft.
In view of these challenges, the Safaricom model where it is powering about 20 of its base stations with small wind turbines and solar panels is being seen as an alternative that could be replicated by other players across the continent.
Another example is in Morocco where Ericsson has developed a purely solar powered micro-base station for rural areas without access to electricity.
A similar project is being tested in Namibia while Ericsson and MTN are developing a project to power base stations using bio-fuel from palm and pumpkin seeds.
The project is being supported by the Global Mobile Association's Development Fund.
Analysts say there is an abundance of sun and wind in the continent and this advantage should be seized to help operators cut their operating costs.
The model adopted by the Kenya Power and Lighting Company where it is developing a fibre optic backbone across the country for leasing to telecommunications operators was cited as a way to create synergy between information technology and electric utilities to support connectivity efforts.
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ITU suggested that governments should help accelerate connectivity of the continent by offering import duty waivers and tax reductions to local companies supplying equipment based on renewable energy to mobile operators.
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