Singtel moved to make its 5G network more energy efficient and advance its sustainability goals by working with Ericsson to deploy its latest radio product.

The operator expects to reduce energy usage by more than 18 per cent by using Ericsson’s AIR 3268 radios.

Singtel stated its current 5G network already uses 58 per cent less energy than its 4G infrastructure.

The new radio weighs 12kg, 40 per cent less than earlier generations of 5G equipment, meaning a site with multiple radios could be 76 per cent lighter than a 4G site.

“By integrating energy-efficient technologies into our operations and infrastructure, we aim to build a better, more sustainable future,” Anna Yip, CEO of consumer singapore at Singtel, said.

“With an optimised network, even end-users will be able to conserve energy on their mobile devices.”

Singtel stated it deployed power savings techniques including energy-efficient radio and optimised network algorithms at 99 per cent of its base stations over the past seven years, delivering energy savings of about 1,012MWh per year.

The operator aims to be net-zero by 2050.