• MTN is launching its own solar and wind energy generation projects to mitigate loadshedding.
• The company lost R700 million to power outages in 2022.
• It is building a small-scale wind farm in the Western Cape first, which it will follow with more infrastructure in the Eastern Cape.

Today, local giant MTN said it is launching a hybrid solar and wind renewable energy generation project.

With the earliest hope for an end to loadshedding only in the next five years, the country’s telecommunication firms are faced with ever-compounding costs as they struggle to maintain the electricity that their businesses require to operate.

According to its end-year results for 2022, MTN lost nearly R700 million due to incessant outages. This as the company had to increase the number of diesel generators at its mobile network towers, which in turn meant that more security was needed.

It hopes that using alternative energy will reduce the amount of diesel burnt per site during loadshedding. Eventually, the company wants the project to begin mitigating the effects of Eskom’s outages as part of its R1.5 billion plan to bolster network resilience.

In a press release sent to us, the company says that the rolling out of this latest project is in line with its Net Zero effort, to reduce its reliance on fossil fuel-generated electricity. Plans are in place to achieve zero carbon dioxide emissions across its operations by 2040.

“Hybrid renewable energy systems provide green energy to power assets sustainably, reducing reliance on unstable grids and the carbon-emitting fuels that are driving global warming,” the telecom explains.

MTN’s renewable energy project will be undertaken across six months, with completion set for the third quarter of 2023, starting with a “small-scale field trial” in Worcester, Western Cape.

This trial will be followed by a series of projects in the Eastern Cape, which MTN says is a proven geographic destination for wind energy.

“The solution avoids the need to work with complicated masts, guy wires, or towers and the windmills being used can be installed at various levels of a cell tower to harness more wind energy,” MTN continues. 

“MTN continues to harness best-in-breed technologies to ensure we drive sustainable solutions across our network. Innovation in generating green energy is critical in achieving MTN Net Zero goals as we move towards fulfilment of our Ambition 2025 strategy,” said Charles Molapisi, CEO of MTN SA. 

Additionally, the largest telecom in Africa by sheer revenue share says it has begun using energy-efficient lighting, removing redundant high-energy consuming hardware and burning gas generators at its technical buildings as well as leveraging power from a concentrated solar power plant.

“MTN is firmly on track to deliver broad, deep-rooted and beneficial alternative energy projects that make a difference to the planet while ensuring we deliver network stability and excellence to our customers. Everyone deserves the benefit of a modern connected life, and innovation cannot stop as we work to deliver against this promise,” concludes Molapisi.