Mahdi Masali, the secretary of the Electricity Industry Syndicate, announced that the country's electricity infrastructure is not adequately prepared to meet the needs of 114 million fourth-generation broadband subscriptions. This warning comes at a time when Star Hashemi, the Minister of Communications, has also called for prioritizing electricity supply for communication sites and emphasized that providing batteries without ensuring electricity stability is insufficient.
Challenges of Energy Mismatch and Internet Quality
All these statements lead to the question of how the mismatch in stable electricity supply with the growing demand for communication results in a decline in call and internet quality, increased maintenance costs for networks, and disruption of digital business activities. Jahangir Aghazadeh, the head of the Internet and Data Transfer Commission of the Tehran Trade Union, referred to the different conditions of wireless and fixed internet networks during power outages and explained that in case of a power cut, batteries must be activated to supply power to the sites.
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Consequences of Power Outages for Users
Aghazadeh further stated: "When frequent outages occur, there is not enough time to fully charge the batteries. As a result, the batteries cannot provide power effectively, leading to a decrease in service quality." He also pointed out that power outages cause users to be transferred to the nearest telecommunications sites, which reduces the bandwidth available to each user.
The Deputy Minister of Communications, Hamid Fattahi, also announced that last year, power outages caused 10 to 15 percent of operators' communication sites to go offline. This situation indicates the inability of the communication network to continuously compensate for the energy mismatch.
Aghazadeh referred to the challenges of investing in the electricity needed for data centers and reminded that replacing conventional batteries with lithium batteries requires heavy investment. According to him, the financial situation of many internet operators is not favorable, and the existing tariffs limit extensive investment opportunities.
Finally, Aghazadeh emphasized that power outages should be prioritized to minimize damage to the communication network and sensitive infrastructure. He also mentioned the possibility of using white lists to maintain network stability in emergency conditions.
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