• Juniper Research lauds the Japanese operator for having “the most impactful sustainability initiatives” among mobile network operators worldwide
• Extensive use of cloud technologies and automation, and enthusiasm for the circular economy, propel KDDI to the top spot in the sustainability ranking
• Research firm is optimistic that 5G advances, edge and cloud computing, fibre and Open RAN can all significantly lower the rate of energy consumption per unit of mobile data

Juniper Research has checked out the green credentials of mobile network operators around the world and has named its top three when it comes to having “the most impactful sustainability initiatives”: Japan’s KDDI is number one, followed by Deutsche Telekom, then US telco giant Verizon.

The research firm said it gave KDDI top spot for sustainability because of its extensive use of cloud technologies and automation, as well as what appears to be solid contributions to the circular economy. Juniper takes on board KDDI’s claim that 99% of its disused network hardware was recycled in 2023, and approvingly notes that that the Japanese operator is also “optimising datacentre operations” and reducing the scale of physical networks through network function virtualisation (NFV), all of which cuts down on energy consumption.

According to the research firm, cloud computing is the most impactful network technology in reducing carbon emissions, costs and energy consumption. Alongside “high levels of virtualisation across 5G and future 6G networks”, Juniper predicts that centralising and automating network functions via cloud platforms will enable operators worldwide to reduce their overall energy consumption by more than 2,000 terawatt hours (TWh) by 2025. It’s a sizable energy saving given that the UK’s entire electricity consumption was 266 TWh in 2023.

“Cloud computing is an instrumental strategy for operators to improve efficiency and meet sustainability goals,” said Frederick Savage, a senior market data analyst at Juniper Research and author of the report ‘Global Network Operator Sustainability Strategies 2024-2029’. “Cloud’s ability to dynamically allocate resources in real-time significantly reduces energy consumption, compared to the constant energy requirement from traditional networks.”

Better energy efficiencies with the latest tech, says Juniper

Despite highlighting some laudable sustainability initiatives, overall energy consumption will continue to steadily rise over the research firm’s forecast period in all regions of the world (see chart, above).

The Juniper team nonetheless sees 5G and other tech advances as a way to bolster energy efficiencies (rate of energy consumption per unit of mobile data) through the likes of massive MIMO to increase the capacity of network hardware and equipment, as well as AI-powered intelligent standby modes to detect periods of low network activity and adjust energy usage accordingly.

Juniper flags Telefónica as a good example of the progress that can be made. The Spanish giant, since 2015, has apparently seen a 759% increase in overall network traffic data but with an 8.6% decrease in overall energy consumption.

Aside from cloud technology, Juniper sees potential for increased energy efficiencies in edge computing (decreased energy consumption compared with sending data back and forth from larger more centralised datacentres) and the shift from copper to fibre in networks and datacentres (less energy-intensive cooling needed).

Juniper’s Savage also sees greater energy efficiencies with Open RAN, mainly because of greater network virtualisation and “usage of intelligent architecture and infrastructure [that] allows for smart monitoring of network traffic idle times and can implement automated sleep modes when and where required”.  

For all the greater energy efficiencies available now or currently in the tech pipeline, overall energy consumption looks set to skyrocket in datacentres, simply because of the much higher data volumes. According to a recent report from research firm IDC, global datacentre electricity consumption will reach 857 TWh by 2028, which is more than double the amount guzzled in 2023. Power-hungry AI workloads will account for a growing portion of total datacentre electricity use, predicts IDC, accounting for 146.2 TWh by 2027.

- Ken Wieland, Contributing Editor, TelecomTV