Mobile operators talked about difficulties with ensuring autonomy during blackouts

Kyivstar, Vodafone Ukraine and lifecell issued a joint statement in which they announced the impossibility of fully fulfilling the requirements of the National Center for Operational and Technical Management of Networks (NCU) to ensure 100% autonomy of mobile communication and the Internet during power outages. The NSU requirements provide for the support of autonomy for 10 hours, but this is caused by serious technical and organizational difficulties.

In the statement, the operators noted that the fulfillment of the requirements of the NCU critically depends on the situation in the energy sector. The blackout schedules used in Ukraine make it impossible to support the operation of telecommunications equipment during the specified time. The requirements of the NCU provide for complex interaction with energy companies and the reconstruction of the infrastructure, which requires additional costs and resources.

To ensure autonomy, it is necessary to ensure the availability of electricity to fully charge the reserve batteries. This would require permits from electricity providers to increase the current capacity, as the additional batteries put a strain on the power system. According to preliminary calculations, approximately 2.8 GWh of electricity will be needed to charge the batteries, which is equal to the power of one power unit of a nuclear power plant.

In this regard, on July 19, 2024, the National Commission for the Regulation of Electricity and Communal Services (NCRECP) approved changes that simplify the procedure for considering applications from mobile operators to obtain the necessary capacity. This decision was important to support the telecommunications infrastructure, and operators have already started implementing the new rules in cooperation with energy companies.

However, there are other obstacles that make it difficult to ensure the autonomy of communication. In particular, there is a shortage of qualified personnel for the maintenance of backup equipment, and the mobilization of employees of contracting organizations worsens the situation. There are also restrictions on the installation of generators on the roofs of buildings, which makes it difficult to place them at base stations. Changing lease agreements to expand space for additional equipment takes an average of 6 months due to bureaucratic procedures.

In addition, the Ukrainian market faces a shortage of batteries and generators, which forces operators to purchase these elements abroad, which is accompanied by logistical difficulties and long delivery times. Frequent and long power outages negatively affect the quality of communication and mobile Internet, especially during blackouts, when the network load increases.

Mobile operators stated that even with maximum efforts to ensure 100% autonomy of mobile communications and the Internet for 10 hours during power outages is an extremely difficult task. Despite this, operators have already invested more than 3 billion hryvnias in increasing the energy independence of their networks, renewing 370,000 batteries and purchasing 5,400 generators and other sources of uninterrupted power.