How to Prepare tower power for seasonal changes
A tower’s backup plan can fall behind the load it supports. As Nigeria prepares for harmattan, operators need a current view of which sites require closer maintenance, what their batteries deliver under load and what is driving generator use.
Seasonal preparation gives Energy, Operations, and Finance an opportunity to review the evidence together and agree on where to act first.
The Nigerian tower power context
MTN’s April 2025 case study on its work with American Tower describes energy-efficiency, solar, and battery-storage initiatives across markets, including Nigeria. IHS Towers similarly identifies solar, hybrid power, and battery technology as ways to reduce dependence on diesel and improve network availability.
These public initiatives show why seasonal reviews need to examine how the different power sources work together. The following five steps provide a practical starting point.
1. Match preparation to local conditions
Use current NiMet forecasts and site-specific observations to schedule preparation. At solar sites, dust accumulation can reduce panel output. Compare site changes with weather, site load, and generator use, then investigate the cause and arrange cleaning or technical inspection where warranted.
2. Check the cost of the current power mix
Energy costs feature in major tower agreements. In August 2024, IHS and MTN Nigeria announced renewed agreements covering approximately 13,500 tenancy contracts, with a component indexed to the cost of providing diesel power.
For your seasonal review, establish the current load profile, grid availability, generator runtime and energy cost by source. If generator use has increased, examine it alongside solar contribution and battery operation to identify what needs investigation.
Verify backup under the current load
Check whether additional radio equipment or other site changes have altered the demand placed on backup power. Use a sufficiently complete record of a recent grid interruption to review how long batteries supported the load, how voltage behaved and when the generator started.
enee.io monitors battery-bank voltage and current and supports configured battery-voltage alerts. These readings help teams identify patterns needing further investigation and support maintenance or replacement decisions.
Inspect the equipment environment
Include ventilation, filters and enclosures in maintenance planning. Cummins recommends more frequent generator maintenance in dusty conditions; follow the relevant equipment guidance and site findings.
Review ambient-temperature readings at the monitoring location. Where suitable lead-acid sensors are installed, also review battery temperatures. Distinguish the surrounding environment from temperature measured on a battery, and use the findings to direct physical checks.
Turn recurring alerts into assigned actions
Review repeated warnings with their site, timestamp and frequency. Examine the sequence of grid supply, battery discharge and generator start or stop events to understand the operating context.
Assign the investigation to a responsible person, agree the next action and set a review date. After maintenance, check subsequent readings to establish whether the pattern has changed. Where a service partner manages power, agree who maintains the records and who owns the response.
Bring site evidence into the seasonal review
enee.io brings measurements, configured alerts and historical reporting together across monitored energy assets. Proteus supports site comparisons and reviews of recurring issues, helping teams prioritise investigations for the seasonal maintenance plan.
Request an enee.io demonstration focused on your estate’s backup performance or recurring power alerts. Share the number of sites you manage and one operational question you want to investigate. https://www.enee.io/contact-us