VivaCell-MTS launches solar base stations on Yerevan-Gyumri highway

PanARMENIAN.Net - Ahead of the New Year, VivaCell-MTS has launched two base stations on a 12-km-long area of the Mastara-Maralik road of the strategically important Yerevan-Gyumri highway.

What makes the base stations different from regular ones is that they use solar power. For years, this sparsely populated area had not had reliable mobile communication because of the absence of power supply.

Base stations are using solar energy to considerably reduce consumption of electricity, at the same time reducing the company’s maintenance expenses. VivaCell-MTS strategy of providing reliable 2G/3G network coverage in sparsely populated areas and on highways of strategic importance is not based on the return-on-investment principle and a desire to reduce operational expenses. The Company aims at closing the technological gap between the cities and rural communities. Use of alternative energy by VivaCell-MTS is a vivid example of the Company’s responsible approach to natural resource management.

“We aim to increase the share of renewable energy in the production value chain,” VivaCell-MTS General Manager Ralph Yirikian noted. “The outcome is twofold: we reduce the cost of production and, at the same time, cut consumption of electricity supply, attained from traditional sources. It has been proved that the use of alternative energy contributes to the competitive advantage, in addition to strong environmental imperative.”

Throughout 2015, VivaCell-MTS continued coverage expansion and network improvement works across Armenia. The Company has installed 80 new 2G/3G mobile base stations, which will further add to the capacity of the network, improve the quality and speed of Internet and voice services. As a leader in terms of the mobile network coverage, VivaCell-MTS has 2370 mobile base stations (2G-1185, 3G-1185), providing 2G and 3G coverage for the 99,8 % and 98,8% of the population, respectively.

In 2015 4G/LTE technology was brought to Jermuk resort town, where LTE mobile base stations had been installed recently. The LTE networks in Vagharshapat and Armavir were enriched by one LTE base station each. Currently, the only LTE network in Armenia serves Yerevan, Gyumri, Vanadzor, Dilijan, Tsaghkadzor, Armavir, Vagharshapat and Jermuk. The number of LTE mobile base stations is 255, providing 46,6% of the population with LTE coverage.