Communications News Western Australia

Horizon Power and Telstra set up Australia’s first remote comms tower

Eliza Sayon Feb 7, 2022

2 min read

To bolster the resilience of regional communications, Horizon Power has partnered with Telstra in launching the country’s first remote mobile communications tower powered by a standalone power system (SPS).

Energy Minister Bill Johnston was in Esperance to officially launch the SPS in the region, which will help reduce carbon emissions and improve community safety across Western Australia.

“Western Australia continues to lead the way in the green energy revolution, with Horizon Power becoming the first utility to prove the viability of SPS,” Energy Minister Bill Johnston said.

“This installation strengthens communications resilience in the area, which is at particular risk during natural disasters.”

The standalone power system (SPS) unit is powered by eight kilowatt (kW) solar panels, a 16.8kW hour battery and a 26kW backup generator. This will ensure that the SPS receives 12kW of continuous power, eliminating the risk of a power outage and enabling the Telstra tower to continue operating during natural disasters and emergencies which may impact a traditional network of poles and wires.

This will help keep the local community connected and informed at crucial times.

The system was delivered by Horizon Power and its joint venture partner, Boundary Power, and is an example of one of the many commercial opportunities that can be leveraged by off-grid technology.

In addition to this program, the Western Australian Government has also committed to delivering 1,000 standalone power systems over five years across regional Western Australia and in remote Aboriginal communities.

“The Esperance bushfires in 2015, which temporarily wiped out mobile phone coverage in the region, highlighted the need for a more robust and reliable power source,” Energy Minister Bill Johnston said.

“I’m pleased that Telstra is working with Horizon Power to keep the Esperance community safe, and hope to see SPS implemented at remote towers across the State in the future.”

Source: Government of Western Australia media release

Eliza Sayon

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Eliza is a content producer and editor at Public Spectrum. She is an experienced writer on topics related to the government and to the public, as well as stories that uplift and improve the community.