This driver surpasses priorities such as reducing operational expenses, complying with regulations, and addressing power considerations.
The finding is driven by the fact that operators estimate that an average of 20-30 per cent of their equipment will become obsolete (unsupported) within the next two years.
What’s more, 15 per cent of operators anticipate that up to half of their equipment will face obsolescence within the same timeframe.
Kieran Crawford, group director, TXO, said, “The absence of extended support for equipment stems from the OEM's relentless pursuit of selling new products. Nevertheless, this practice incurs substantial costs for operators and exacerbates their carbon footprint.
“Operators must shift away from the perpetual cycle of purchasing new equipment and instead explore avenues to prolong the lifespan of their current network assets.”
John Teasdale, group chief networks officer, TXO, added, “Across the industry, we're seeing a big move towards network rationalisation, as operators streamline operations to cut costs. By optimising 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 per cent reduction in power consumption across sites is achievable.”
The full whitepaper also included a ranking by operators of the key drivers for decommissioning activities, alongside the benefits they were expecting to deliver:
- Power reductions and sustainability considerations: 61 per cent of operators are expecting to achieve a power reduction of between 5 per cent and 30 per cent through replacing legacy equipment. This could include old 2G and 3G equipment, which 33 per cent of operators said they are removing as a priority.
- Reducing OPEX: The vast majority (82 per cent) of operators surveyed expect an operational cost reduction of 10-30 per cent from decommissioning activity.
- Regulatory requirements: This includes the requirement to remove equipment deemed by some governments to be unsafe. 24 per cent of operators said they are removing vendor-specific hardware such as that from Huawei as a priority.
Last year, BT Group announced an extension of its partnership with TXO to resell, recycle and reuse legacy equipment in a circular networks sustainability drive.
Under the new partnership, TXO customers can offer BT Group’s portfolio of networking equipment platforms to the global refurbishment market. Additionally, TXO’s approach to decommissioning BT Group’s legacy networks provides learning and insight for other network operators as they begin to tackle decommissioning of their own networks.
TXO has also set its sights on further acquisitions, with the business recently refining its management team with a new chief operating officer and chief commercial officer as it looks to capitalise on opportunities in the market.