UAE operator e& deploys GCC’s first dual-band 64T64R MetaAAU and cites 35 per cent energy cut

Abu Dhabi operator e& UAE is calling a milestone in 5G evolution, saying it has put into service the GCC’s first Dual‑Band 64T64R MetaAAU radio on a live network. The Huawei‑supplied unit combines 2.6GHz and 3.5GHz in a single, smart radio head and is aimed at boosting capacity and coverage while trimming energy use and the site footprint.

Abdulrahman Al Humaidan, senior vice‑president for access network development at e& UAE, said in the company’s press statement that the deployment marks “a breakthrough in compact, high‑performance network technology” and a “notable marker on our road to net zero by 2030 and 5G‑Advanced.” The statement added that merging the two bands into one unit has halved the amount of equipment needed at mobile sites and materially improved coverage, speed and energy efficiency.

The figures highlighted by e& and echoed by media coverage reflect the vendor’s and operator’s field claims. The Dual‑Band 64T64R MetaAAU is described as pairing an Extremely Large Antenna Array (ELAA) with 384 antenna elements—double what many traditional AAUs boast—to deliver stronger cell‑edge performance and higher user rates. e& says the integrated unit reduces hardware needs and lowers power consumption by about 35 per cent versus separate band installations, with additional smart energy‑saving features such as symbol‑level sleep contributing roughly a 15 per cent reduction during low‑traffic periods. Coverage and busy‑area performance gains are put in the 30–60 per cent range, while the integrated approach is said to cut equipment footprint by around 60 per cent and to shorten deployment time by about half.

Those technical and energy‑saving claims align closely with Huawei’s own public material on MetaAAU and its 5GigaGreen initiative, which outlines ultra‑wideband RF, multi‑antenna ELAA architectures and orchestration tools meant to lower site power. Huawei has previously cited field figures suggesting double‑digit energy reductions and pointed to examples—such as a commercial 64T64R deployment in Beijing with China Unicom—where MetaAAU improved in‑building and deep‑residential coverage while delivering uplink and downlink gains. Industry reporting at the time also noted hardware innovations like signal distribution interfaces that cut cable loss and software beamforming advances that narrow and adapt beams to users, helping realize coverage and power benefits.

e&’s announcement follows other demonstrations of MetaAAU‑led green sites. In one instance showcased at COP28, etisalat by e& presented a net‑zero 5G Massive MIMO demonstrator powered by renewables and managed by an AI energy system; vendor materials attributed energy‑efficiency improvements and an estimated reduction in annual CO2 to the integrated design. Such demonstrations are pitched by vendors and operators as proofs of concept for decarbonised mobile infrastructure.

While the technical case for ELAA‑style, dual‑band AAUs is being made by both vendor and operator, independent third‑party verification of the exact percentage gains cited in press material remains limited in the public domain. Industry coverage by specialist outlets has corroborated many of the mechanisms—greater element counts, tighter beam control and smarter sleep modes—that can drive efficiency and capacity improvements, but operators weighing large‑scale rollouts will typically test claimed benefits on their own networks and weigh them against integration, maintenance and supply‑chain considerations.

For e&, the deployment underscores broader strategic and sustainability aims. The company frames the move as aligned with its public net‑zero ambitions and with efforts to ready networks for the next stage of 5G‑Advanced services. e&’s full‑year 2024 results, published earlier this year, showed consolidated revenue of AED 59.2 billion and a net profit of AED 10.8 billion, numbers the group cites when framing continued capital investment in 5G, cloud and AI capabilities.

If the MetaAAU approach scales across the region, operators say it could trim both capital expenditure—by cutting the number of separate radios and related civil work—and operating costs through lower energy use and faster site roll‑outs. The real‑world impact, however, will hinge on how consistently field trials replicate vendor figures across different site types, spectrum holdings and traffic patterns, and on the commercial terms vendors offer for upgrading existing sites.

For now, e&’s live deployment in the UAE serves as a high‑profile example of the industry’s shift toward higher‑element arrays, multi‑band consolidation and software‑driven energy management as carriers seek to expand capacity while lowering carbon intensity. The operator and Huawei frame the step as a practical move toward more efficient 5G‑Advanced networks; independent assessment and wider operator adoption will determine whether the claimed gains become the new baseline for region‑wide rollouts.

Source: Noah Wire Services