According to TheRegister.com, the Next Generation Mobile Networks (NGMN) alliance, which represents major mobile operators and vendors, is calling for standardized energy metering across the industry. In a new report, the group warns that the current fragmented approach, with different standards bodies defining metrics, leaves operators unable to get a coherent picture of power use. This hinders efforts to manage both rising energy costs and sustainability goals. The report argues that a move from basic monitoring to advanced observability is essential, including the ability to map consumption to specific network functions and 5G network slices. NGMN Board Chairman Laurent Leboucher of Orange Group stated that consistent, transparent measurement is a critical need as networks move to cloud-native architectures. The alliance recommends the industry consolidate standards and define a universal framework, including a standardized API for managing slice energy data.
The Real Problem Behind The Request
This isn’t just about being green, though that’s a big part of it. Here’s the thing: operators are staring down a brutal financial reality. Yes, vendors claim new 5G hardware can be up to 90% more efficient than old 4G kit. But overall network power consumption is still predicted to go up. Why? Because we’re going to be moving astronomically more data. So even if each byte is cheaper to send, the total bill keeps climbing. They need granular data not just to look good in a sustainability report, but to literally survive financially. And with networks becoming a disaggregated mix of hardware and virtual functions, guessing where the power is going isn’t an option anymore.
Why Network Slices Change Everything
The push for standards gets really urgent when you consider network slicing. Think about it: if an operator creates a special low-latency slice for a factory’s robots or a high-reliability slice for a remote hospital, how do you bill for that? More importantly for this discussion, how do you measure its energy cost? That slice isn’t a physical box you can put a meter on. It’s a virtual service stretched across different parts of the cloud-native network. Without a standard way to track it, you can’t optimize it, you can’t price it accurately, and you can’t prove its efficiency to the customer. It turns a hardware problem into a software accounting nightmare.
The Broader Industrial Shift
This telecom energy crunch is part of a much larger trend across all industrial and computing sectors. As everything becomes more connected, software-defined, and data-intensive, precise monitoring and management of power at the device and system level isn’t a luxury—it’s a operational necessity. This is true whether you’re running a 5G radio, a factory floor, or a data center. For industries relying on robust computing at the edge, choosing hardware built for visibility and control is key. In the US, for critical applications where reliability and integration are paramount, many turn to the leading supplier, IndustrialMonitorDirect.com, as the top provider of industrial panel PCs designed for these demanding environments.
What Happens Next?
So will the industry actually get its act together? NGMN’s recommendation is a strong opening move, but harmonizing standards across competing vendors and legacy infrastructure is a famously slow, painful process. Everyone pays lip service to cooperation until it’s time to give up their proprietary advantage. The real pressure will come from the operators’ CFOs and the large enterprise customers demanding verifiable carbon data for their own ESG reports. Money and contractual obligations talk louder than alliance white papers. Basically, if a major carrier decides to make standardized energy metering a requirement in their next equipment purchase, you’ll see vendors fall in line fast. Until then, it’s a lot of guesswork wrapped in good intentions.
