The Eco Tower combines our unique Crossflow wind turbine and our market-leading modular energy management system (IRES) with telecoms equipment in a single self-powered mast. The result is a footprint efficient and cost-effective energy solution for the telecoms sector.
This pioneering tower means that wind power can now be embedded in and make a real contribution to the power supply of telecoms equipment with no interference or impact on network performance. While the immediate application is in rural communities, it can also be used on buildings and in urban settings where it can help telcos boost their use of renewables and reduce dependency on both diesel and the National Grid.
This future-proofed tower is reliable and easy to install, and specifically addresses the concerns most commonly associated with wind power, including network interference, performance, maintenance, reliability, and planning permission concerns. It has variable height and loading options to accommodate the expected growth in tower sharing by multiple operators, and it can be installed without the need to dig trenches or lay electricity cables.
The Eco Tower also offers enhanced renewable contributions when combined with solar and battery systems, reducing carbon emissions by up to 90% and delivering significantly lower TCO costs to diesel and diesel/solar/battery solutions. All of this in areas of particularly low solar irradiation or high diesel price environments.
The first telecoms company to use the Eco Tower was Vodafone, where it supported its target of achieving Net Zero in the UK by 2027.
The initial Proof of Concept project demonstrated the reliability of the turbine and the integrated energy system, proved co-hosting the turbine on a single Telecom Tower has no impact on Network Performance, and delivered strong performance, especially at higher wind speeds.
Learn more about how the Eco Tower works.
Andrea Dona, Chief Network Officer and Development Director at Vodafone, said: “Connectivity is vital to everyone, no matter where you live. Working with Crossflow to develop our self-powering mobile site will allow us to deliver the benefits of digital to parts of the country in the most environmentally friendly way.”