VIENNA, Oct. 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The 10th Global ICT Energy Efficiency Summit, hosted by Huawei in Vienna on October 14–15, brought together operators, TowerCos, energy service providers, aggregators and analysts around a shared conclusion: telecom sites must evolve from passive energy consumers into active energy prosumers that generate, store, manage and trade electricity. Virtual power plants (VPPs) are moving from concept to near-term business priority.

The economics are sharpening at the site level. Co-located solar-plus-storage costs have fallen below US$0.04 per kWh. In Europe, site-level VPP deployments are delivering an average ROI of about three years and roughly €800 in annual revenue per site, alongside a 100% improvement in power availability and a clear path to reducing and eventually eliminating diesel dependency. Site energy is thus shifting from a cost center to a strategic asset.

For operators, the challenge is structural: network dependency is rising while energy certainty is declining, and revenue is not growing in step with investment and data traffic. The response combines technology and business-model innovation—opening site energy resources, pooling distributed batteries, using AI to schedule charge and discharge around price signals, and aggregating storage to participate in grid services. For aggregators, the priority is to turn dispersed site assets into flexible, grid-ready capacity through standard interfaces, interoperable platforms and viable commercial models. This requires aggregating many small site-level resources into a portfolio large enough to bid into grid markets, while operators retain control of site resilience and service continuity. Both sides need closer collaboration with energy and financial partners to scale.

Early deployments show the value. During the Portugal blackout, critical services remained online for up to 12 hours. In Finland, the VPP solution generated site revenue. In Southeast Asia, 86% of sites in a rural deployment achieved zero diesel refills over 24 months, operating entirely on solar power with zero carbon emissions. These cases show that prosumer sites can strengthen service continuity, reduce fuel dependence and support decarbonization under different market and grid conditions.

The summit marked the launch of the "Transitioning to Prosumers—Global Initiative for the Communications Industry," calling on the telecom sector to open site energy resources, align on standards, interfaces and business models, and build an open energy ecosystem. Huawei said it will continue advancing the deep integration of bits and watts and work with global partners on innovation and standards collaboration to support the industry's shift toward a high-quality energy system.

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