How much power does a cellular base station use?

This problem exists particularly among the mobile telephony towers in rural areas, that lack quality grid power supply. A cellular base station can use anywhere from 1 to 5 kW power per hour depending upon the number of transceivers attached to the base station, the age of cell towers, and energy needed for air conditioning.

Is there a direct relationship between base station traffic load and power consumption?

The real data in terms of the power consumption and traffic load have been obtained from continuous measurements performed on a fully operated base station site. Measurements show the existence of a direct relationship between base station traffic load and power consumption.

How much power does an antenna use?

The antenna output power level is typically between 20 watts and a few hundred watts for an outdoor base station. Television transmitters, by comparison, have 10-1000 times higher output power than outdoor base stations. Antennas mounted indoors use very low power levels, typically around a few watts or less.

How do base stations affect mobile cellular network power consumption?

Base stations represent the main contributor to the energy consumption of a mobile cellular network. Since traffic load in mobile networks significantly varies during a working or weekend day, it is important to quantify the influence of these variations on the base station power consumption.

Why do cellular base stations need maintenance?

Cellular base stations use power without any interruption and also needs maintenance. The increase in demand of power base stations from Indian telecommunication industry is a big challenge, especially in rural India.

What type of generator does a base station use?

The air conditioning of the base station runs at 220 VAC. These base stations can be powered by two types of diesel generators. The first is the conventional type where 220 VAC is converted to 48 VDC to charge the batteries and power the communication equipment.