Report on Energy Efficiency in Telecommunications Packet Core Networks and Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals

Introduction: The Energy Challenge in Modern Networks

The packet core is the central component of a telecommunications network, managing immense volumes of user data and signalling traffic. To maintain performance standards, including low latency and high speeds, this infrastructure is frequently operated at near-full capacity. This operational model leads to significant electricity consumption, which escalates as networks expand to accommodate more users, devices, and applications. This high energy demand presents a substantial challenge to the telecommunications industry’s environmental and financial sustainability, directly impacting progress towards key United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 13 (Climate Action).

A Strategic Partnership for Sustainable Infrastructure (SDG 9 & SDG 17)

In response to rising energy consumption, a partnership between Nokia and Intel has been established to develop an energy-efficient, cloud-native core network. This collaboration is a prime example of SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals), leveraging combined expertise to address industry-wide sustainability challenges. The initiative focuses on creating sustainable infrastructure, in line with SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure), by re-engineering core network components for greater resource efficiency.

Energy-Efficient Core Network Portfolio

The collaboration has produced a portfolio of solutions designed to reduce the environmental footprint of network operations. These products are engineered to be infrastructure-agnostic and support distributed deployment models across 5G, 4G, 3G, and 2G networks. The key components include:

• Nokia Cloud Mobile Gateway (CMG): Executes data plane functions with optimized energy use.
• Nokia Cloud Mobility Manager (CMM): Manages control plane functions, including session and mobility management, with a focus on performance-per-watt.
• Nokia Cloud Network Resource Director (CNRD): Optimizes network resources and facilitates the Service Based Architecture (SBA), contributing to efficient network slice selection.

Technological Innovations Driving Progress on SDG 7 and SDG 13

The partnership’s success is founded on technological advancements that directly support SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) by reducing the energy required per unit of data processed, and SDG 13 (Climate Action) by lowering the associated greenhouse gas emissions.

Advanced Computing and Power Management

The core of the solution lies in the integration of Intel’s latest processor technology with intelligent software.

1. Intel Xeon 6 Processors: This processor family features variants with Efficient-Cores (E-Cores) specifically designed for high-density, energy-efficient workloads typical of 5G and microservices architectures. By utilizing these processors, Nokia’s core network functions can handle higher workloads within a given power envelope, promoting responsible consumption patterns as outlined in SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production).
2. Intel Infrastructure Power Manager (IPM): This software enables dynamic control over CPU core configurations and frequencies (P-states and C-states). It automatically adjusts power consumption to match real-time workload demands, eliminating redundant energy use without compromising network performance.

Telemetry and AI for Proactive Optimization

To further enhance efficiency, the system integrates advanced monitoring and predictive analytics.

• DPDK-based Telemetry: A telemetry framework provides real-time data on key performance metrics such as packet throughput, latency, and CPU utilization. This data feed allows for granular, intelligent power management, ensuring that energy consumption aligns precisely with application performance needs.
• AI-Driven Resource Scaling: Nokia employs machine learning (ML) models to analyze and predict traffic patterns. These insights enable proactive adjustments to compute resources for each network function. In cloud-native deployments, this facilitates Kubernetes Horizontal Pod Autoscaling (HPA), automatically scaling resources up or down to meet projected demand, thereby preventing over-provisioning and wasted energy.

Quantifiable Results and Contribution to Climate Targets

Testing of the integrated solution has demonstrated significant advancements in energy efficiency. A comparison of Nokia’s CMM running on Intel Xeon 6 with E-Cores against a previous deployment using 3rd Gen Xeon processors yielded the following results:

• A 2.7x improvement in performance-per-watt.
• A 60% reduction in absolute power consumption for the same workload.

These results build upon previous successes, such as a 40% reduction in runtime energy consumption reported with 4th Gen Intel Xeon processors. This continuous improvement trajectory demonstrates a tangible contribution to corporate and industry-wide climate goals. The partnership directly supports Nokia’s objective to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across its value chain by 50% by 2030. Furthermore, it aligns with the broader industry trend, where the carbon footprint per petabyte of traffic is steadily declining due to the adoption of greener network technologies.

Conclusion: Fostering a Sustainable Digital Future

The collaboration between Nokia and Intel exemplifies how targeted innovation can align commercial objectives with global sustainability imperatives. By developing a high-performance, energy-efficient packet core, the partnership provides a direct pathway for telecommunications operators to reduce operational costs and their environmental impact. This initiative makes a measurable contribution to multiple Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG 7, SDG 9, SDG 12, SDG 13, and SDG 17, shaping a more sustainable and responsible future for the entire telecommunications industry.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

   The article highlights issues and solutions that are directly connected to several Sustainable Development Goals. The primary focus on reducing energy consumption in telecommunications infrastructure and the collaborative efforts to achieve this touch upon goals related to energy, industry, climate action, and partnerships.

   • SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy

     The core theme of the article is improving energy efficiency in the packet core of telco networks. It discusses the “rising concerns around energy consumption and sustainability” and presents solutions that deliver “significant energy savings.” This directly aligns with the goal of ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all, particularly by improving energy efficiency.

   • SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

     The article details innovations in telecommunications infrastructure. The partnership between Nokia and Intel to create “an energy-efficient, cloud-native core network portfolio” by leveraging next-generation processors is a clear example of building resilient and sustainable infrastructure. It focuses on upgrading industry technology to be more resource-efficient and environmentally sound.

   • SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

     This goal is addressed through the lens of resource efficiency. The article describes how new technologies enable telcos to “handle higher workloads for a given compute footprint,” which “improves resource utilization.” By minimizing electricity usage and “redundant power consumption,” the solutions promote more sustainable consumption and production patterns within the tech industry.

   • SDG 13: Climate Action

     The article explicitly connects energy efficiency with climate action. It mentions that reducing power consumption addresses “pressing sustainability and environmental concerns.” It also highlights Nokia’s corporate goal “to cut down greenhouse gas emissions across its value chain by 50% by 2030” and the industry-wide trend of a declining “carbon footprint per unit of traffic,” which are direct measures to combat climate change.

   • SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

     The entire article is framed around the “Nokia–Intel collaboration.” This partnership is presented as a key driver for achieving the sustainability and energy efficiency goals discussed. It exemplifies a multi-stakeholder partnership that mobilizes and shares technology and expertise to advance sustainable development, as described in the article: “The Intel–Nokia collaboration thus shapes not only telco’s profitability goals, but also how the whole industry is perceived in terms of environmental responsibility.”

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

   The article’s content points to several specific targets within the identified SDGs.

   • Target 7.3: Double the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency.

     The article is fundamentally about improving energy efficiency. The development of solutions that provide a “2.7x improvement in performance and an 60% savings in power consumption” and a “40% reduction in runtime energy consumption” are direct contributions to this target.

   • Target 7.2: Increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix.

     This is referenced through Intel’s corporate commitment. The article states, “As of the end of 2022, over 90% of the electricity used across Intel’s global operations…was from renewable sources. The company is aiming to bring this figure to 100% by 2030.”

   • Target 9.4: Upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable, with increased resource-use efficiency and greater adoption of clean and environmentally sound technologies.

     The collaboration to create an “energy-efficient packet core” using advanced processors (Intel Xeon 6) and AI-driven optimization is a direct effort to upgrade critical digital infrastructure to be more sustainable and resource-efficient, as described in the target.

   • Target 12.2: Achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources.

     The article’s focus on reducing electricity usage through intelligent power management (e.g., Intel IPM controlling C-states and P-states) and proactive resource optimization directly addresses the efficient use of energy, a critical natural resource.

   • Target 13.2: Integrate climate change measures into policies, strategies and planning.

     While the target often refers to national policies, the article shows its application at the corporate level. Nokia’s strategy includes “its aim to cut down greenhouse gas emissions across its value chain by 50% by 2030,” demonstrating the integration of climate targets into corporate strategy and planning.

   • Target 17.17: Encourage and promote effective public, public-private and civil society partnerships.

     The “Intel-Nokia partnership” is a prime example of a private-private partnership that leverages combined expertise (“Merging Intel’s hardware and software capabilities with Nokia’s software innovation”) to achieve shared sustainability goals, demonstrating an effective partnership model.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

   Yes, the article provides several specific, quantifiable indicators that can be used to measure progress.

   • Indicator for Energy Efficiency (Target 7.3):

     The article provides direct metrics for energy savings, such as the “60% savings in power consumption” and a “40% reduction in runtime energy consumption.” These figures serve as direct indicators of improved energy efficiency.

   • Indicator for Renewable Energy Share (Target 7.2):

     A clear indicator is mentioned in relation to Intel’s goals: “Percentage of electricity from renewable sources,” with the company aiming for “100% by 2030.”

   • Indicator for CO2 Emissions (Target 9.4 & 13.2):

     The article provides two relevant indicators. First, a corporate-level indicator is Nokia’s goal of a “50% cut down [in] greenhouse gas emissions.” Second, an industry-level indicator is the “carbon footprint per unit of traffic,” which is reported to have “declined from 110.3 millions of tons of CO2 equivalent per petabyte (MTCO2e/PB) in 2020 to 83.3 MTCO2e/PB.”

   • Indicator for Resource Utilization (Target 12.2):

     The article implies indicators related to performance per unit of energy. The “2.7x improvement in performance” coupled with significant power savings is a measure of doing more with less, indicating more efficient resource use.

   • Indicator for Partnership Effectiveness (Target 17.17):

     The existence of the partnership and its tangible outcomes—the development and deployment of the “energy-efficient, cloud-native core network portfolio”—serve as an indicator of a successful and effective collaboration.

Source: thefastmode.com