下一代运营商可持续发展：更环保的边缘和开放的RAN

The next generationof operator September 2023 The GSMA is a global organisation unifying the mobileecosystem to discover, develop and deliver innovationfoundational to positive business environments andsocietal change. Our vision is to unlock the full power ofconnectivity so that people, industry, and society thrive.Representing mobile operators and organisationsacross the mobile ecosystem and adjacent industries,the GSMA delivers for its members across three GSMA Intelligence is the definitive source of globalmobile operator data, analysis and forecasts, andpublisher of authoritative industry reports and research.Our data covers every operator group, network andMVNO in every country worldwide — from Afghanistan GSMA Intelligence is relied on by leading operators,vendors, regulators, financial institutions and third-partyindustry players, to support strategic decision-makingand long-term investment planning. The data is used as Our team of analysts and experts produce regularthought-leading research reports across a range ofindustry topics. We invite you to find out more at www.gsma.comFollow the GSMA on Twitter: @GSMA www.gsmaintelligence.com info@gsmaintelligence.com For over 30 years, Intel and Dell Technologies haveworked together to help businesses provide newlevels of performance and capabilities. Intel is Dell’spartner for a broad range of data centric solutionsand technologies, from CPUs and chipsets to memory,storage, NICs, and software. Intel technologies withinDell solutions help deliver world-class performance, Authors Tim Hatt, Head of Research and ConsultingEmanuel Kolta, Lead Analyst, Network Sustainabilityand Innovation Peter Jarich, Head of GSMA Intelligence Contents 1Sustainability in telecoms: gathering pace1.1The environmental case and the business case1.2Energy efficiency: no longer a nice to have 2Edge compute: a new era?2.1Business light turns green for edge compute2.2The energy dividend of edge compute 3Open RAN and open questions3.1Sustainability and the industry as a whole3.2The impact of virtual RAN and open RAN Executive summary commitments and timelines stipulated. Nevertheless,nearly 85% of telecoms operators worldwide havemade net-zero commitments – a stellar figure. Decarbonisation has for some years been anchored inthe global climate objectives that were enshrined inthe Paris Agreement of 2015. The compact relies onindividual countries and their industries setting and Tackling the glass half empty The question for operators is how to navigate thesustainability pivot on a business level. The ongoingenterprise digitisation across the economy is amassive shift, on a scale akin to industrialisation andthe advent of the web. As power usage rises from an equipment with AI-enabled sleep states; lower airconditioning usage in edge and core data centres thatdeploy liquid cooling (or natural cooling); smarter site Despite the strategic value of energy growing inimportance, moves at the product and competitivelevels are not as well developed. This becameclear when GSMA Intelligence asked operatorswhether they see energy efficiency as a competitive Positively, there is an abundance of technologydeveloped by major equipment vendors to harvestpower efficiencies and generally be longer lasting. Understanding the energy dividend from greener edge Looking ahead, operators expect both far edge(on premises) and the cloud to soak up risingenterprise data traffic. By 2030, on-premises and The energy implications of rising enterprise data —How will rising enterprise data traffic andworkloads affect overall energy usage and —How should we think about the differencesbetween processing data at the edge versus the Factoring in backhaul-related energy and the energyassociated with datacentre cooling and running highcompute workloads, there is a potential energy-saving impact by retaining more data at the edge —What can operators, vendors and others in theinfrastructure value chain do to mitigate energy To help answer these questions, GSMA Intelligencesurveyed 100 operators and developed a model tosimulate the impact of changing enterprise trafficflows across a range of industries.edge traffic at the edge (instead of sending it tocentral datacentres), a potential overall reduction inenergy usage of 15% is possible. Similarly, at a higherscale, if 40% of edge data is retained, this wouldtranslate into energy savings of just over 30%. The climates where possible. Regardless, the underlyingpoint of an energy ‘dividend’ by making more useof efficient processing at the edge is important for These are projections; actual figures for individualenterprise deployments will vary. It is also key to noteinnovations to improve datacentre energy efficiency Assessing the attraction of vRAN and open RAN The question of whether vRAN will be more or lessenergy efficient than fixed-function appliances hasbeen hotly debated. There is no clear answer, as only value chain, sustainability