Telcos are sitting on a gold mine when it comes to the copper wires they are recycling. In fact, up to 1.76 billion pounds of copper, worth more than $7 billion, will be freed up in the next 10 years as fiber is deployed around the world, according to estimates from TXO, a U.K.-based firm that provides public switched telephone network exchange decommissioning services. The firm is working with BT, which reclaimed more than 441 thousand pounds of copper in the last year.
TXO’s research found that four out of five communication providers are currently either in the process of decommissioning sections of their network or planning to do so in the near future.
Switching from copper to fiber networks also reduces the number of local telephone exchanges that are needed. For example, BT Group is reducing this number from 5,600 today to 1,000 by 2030, freeing up valuable office space.
The benefits of decommissioning activities are long term, resulting in efficiencies that lead to more cost savings, according to TXO. For example, 61 percent of operators are expecting to reduce power usage up to 30 percent through replacing legacy equipment, including 2G and 3G equipment, the firm said. More than 80 percent of operators surveyed by TXO expect an operational cost reduction of 10-30 percent from decommissioning.
“Across the industry, we’re seeing a big move towards network rationalization, as operators streamline operations to cut costs,” John Teasdale, Group Chief Networks Officer at TXO, said. “By optimizing infrastructure, both in terms of quantity and efficiency of hardware, operators could save significantly on power. They may be underestimating the impact on power consumption and costs. Every kilowatt saved on equipment means another saved in cooling, with a 50 percent reduction in power consumption across sites is achievable.”
By J. Sharpe Smith, Inside Towers Technology Editor
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