Paris 2024: Orange Powers Energy Efficiency with 5G Network

The Paris 2024 Olympic Games may be over, but there’s still the Paralympics to look forward to.

There are plenty of ways that the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad is driving energy efficiency, with innovative energy initiatives and sustainable practices implemented left, right and centre to minimise environmental impact and promote a greener future — making this years’ games the most sustainable to date. 

From hydrogen-powered cars to data centre-heated swimming pools, Paris 2024 has positioned itself as a beacon of mass-scale event sustainability. Giving another example, from the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games Organising Committee headquarters to the event sites, all electricity supplied by EDF for this summer’s Games is 100% renewable.

Certified of French origin, this electricity's traceability is especially guaranteed using a blockchain specially designed for the energy sector.

How is Orange driving energy efficiency at Paris 2024 with its 5G network?

French multinational telecommunications company Orange is playing a crucial role in ensuring seamless connectivity while championing energy efficiency across both the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris.

One way in which it is doing this is through its initiative where all its 4G consumer and business customers are granted access to Orange’s 5G network at no additional cost between 3 June and 8 September — covering the run up to and duration of both the Olympics and Paralympics. 

This move not only promises to enhance the user experience during the Games, but also underscores Orange’s commitment to energy efficiency and sustainability.

Per gigabyte (GB) of data traffic, Orange research shows that 5G has the potential to reduce network energy consumption — compared to 4G — two times at launch, 10 times by 2025-2030 and 20 times by 2030-2035.

“With Orange 5G, customers will benefit from a faster and more reliable mobile network,” Orange said. “What’s more, 5G is 10 times more energy-efficient than previous technologies and will help to relieve congestion on the 4G network in the busiest locations.”

And it’s not just at the Olympics that Orange is reducing its energy consumption while providing its best and most efficient service to date. At the end of 2022, Orange began to — and has continued to — take steps to reduce its energy consumption across its European operations outside of France to play its part in tackling the ongoing energy crisis.

Mari-Noëlle Jégo-Laveissière, Deputy CEO, Europe at Orange, said: “With a solid baseline in energy efficiency actions, we will reinforce our ambitions in reducing energy consumption while also continuing to provide top connectivity to our customers. 

“In today’s increasingly digital world, our networks and services have become a critical element of our society and economies. However, we also believe that we have a duty to minimise our impact on the planet. 

“We are determined to continue to find creative ways to improve our energy consumption efficiency and encourage sobriety, while ensuring the resilience of our network and sites.”

Energy efficiency in mobile networks

Like many companies and governments, telecom operators have thrust energy efficiency into the forefront of its priorities off the back of the 2015 Paris Agreement. The industry is estimated to be responsible for between 2 and 3% of global energy consumption. 

Consultancy McKinsey highlighted the importance of minimising environmental impact with its The growing imperative of energy optimization for telco networks report. 

“Our research shows that companies can achieve 15 to 30% savings in energy cost by using a holistic approach that combines technology solutions with site and equipment optimisation, pricing and operational levers to create substantial and sustainable change,” it said.

Orange echoes this sentiment. The company said: “Pressure is on telcos to become greener, not just from a moral and ethical standpoint but from a commercial one, too. 

The telco giant highlights five key areas telcos can focus on to drive greener outcomes.

1. Radio access network (RAN): RAN takes up 70% of a telco’s energy consumption and is the largest source of electricity for mobile operators
2. Replacing copper lines with fibre: The silicon dioxide used in fibre-optic cable manufacturing is one of the most accessible and abundant materials to mine and collect, where copper mining inflicts serious environmental damage
3. The transition to 5G: By sunsetting 3G and other legacy systems, telcos can drive a 15% reduction in energy consumption
4. Scope 3 emissions: Telcos can insist on a carbon neutrality record or proof of ESG commitments when requesting tenders from its value chain
5. Data centres: AI can play a big part in helping reduce the industry’s energy usage and enhance overall sustainability in data centres’ energy usage. For example, Google reported 30% energy savings using AI in its data centres.

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