The GSMA Development Fund is already working with several mobile operators to develop renewable power solutions for a variety of base stations located in diverse geographies. The Development Fund has supported Digicel's deployment of wind and solar energy to power 17 new base stations on the Pacific island of Vanuatu.

John Delves, CEO, Digicel Vanuatu, said: "As oil becomes more scarce and expensive, renewable energy will be used more and more to power telecommunications networks anywhere that grid power is not available."

"Using alternative power solutions, such as harnessing wind and solar energy, will help lower our operational expenditure and reduce our environmental impact, giving people in the more remote islands of Vanuatu access to communications for the first time," he added.

After a successful pilot in conjunction with the GSMA Development Fund and Ericsson, Idea Cellular now uses waste cooking oil to help power more than 350 base stations in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India, where the conventional electricity supply can be erratic. The base stations run on a blend made up of 80 percent diesel fuel and 20 percent waste cooking oil.

Anil K Tandan, Chief Technology Officer of Idea, said: "If we can secure enough vegetable oils from sustainable sources, we will move to a blend of 50 percent diesel and 50 percent biofuels, which will be better for the environment and for our operating costs. We are also exploring other alternative sources of power as we seek to ensure that our mobile network continues to be reliable, sustainable and cost-effective."

The major suppliers of base stations have anticipated the growing demand for green networks and have introduced a variety of low-energy products as well as renewable energy power solutions. New entrants are also emerging, providing tailored bolt-on power solutions for base stations. The GSMA is developing metrics for "green" base stations, to support operators in their decision-making on providers and products.

The operators involved in the Green Power for Mobile programme are meeting in Kenya, on September 19, hosted by Safaricom, a leader in the use of renewable energy for networks with 30 base stations powered by solar and wind energy.