Safaricom 2018 Sustainable Business Report

39 INTRODUCTION OUR BUSINESS OUR MATERIAL TOPICS STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT 2018 SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS REPORT on 24 April 2017, when we lost connectivity into our core network as well as the redundant path, had a significant impact on our SUR. As well as improving power redundancy and backup solutions, we are renegotiating the terms of Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with contractors and service providers to ensure that transmission failures, due to fibre cuts etc., are addressed more swiftly. Like last year, insecurity in parts of the country also had an impact on the restoration of services at remote locations. ENERGY EFFICIENCY Our network uses a variety of energy sources, including national grid, diesel generator, deep cycle battery and renewable energy (solar) solutions. The network continues to grow in size and sophistication every year and so making it more energy efficient and intelligent remains an ongoing priority. One way we manage this ambition is to measure our performance against energy consumption targets (reducing the amount of energy consumed at sites by deploying more energy-efficient technologies and alternative energy solutions). As the following table (top right) shows, we have steadily reduced the cost of energy consumption by site. During the year, we reduced our cost of energy consumption by site by a further KES 1,103 to KES 47,511 per month. The main reason for this improvement is a decrease in generator running times, which has resulted in less diesel being consumed. As well as actively working with Kenya Power to ensure that failures of national grid supplied electricity are resolved swiftly, we have begun replacing the generators at sites that have average running time of two hours per day with deep cycle batteries and/or solar power solutions. FY18 FY17 FY16 FY15 Cost of energy consumption by site (KES per month)* 47,511 48,614 50,292 51,626 * Energy consumed is electricity, diesel and solar. The sources are supplier monthly fueling data and KP bills. Solar energy is only measured at some sites, as such we have extrapolated the solar data to the other sites. Energy mix influences the cost. We also began rolling out a Fuel Management System (FMS) during the year that provides accurate data on site fuel consumption remotely. The FMS prevents fraud and helps us to optimise fuel supplies across the network. We have successfully installed the FMS at 1,173 sites and 850 are already commissioned and operational. We continued deploying a wide range of energy-efficient solutions, including Low- voltage Auto Phase Selectors (APS), free cooling units, and replacing rectifier and smart controller units, as part of our ongoing network modernisation programme. S D G 1 2 S D G 7 Cost of Energy Consumption by Site (KES per month) 48,614 51,626 47,511 50,292 FY15 FY16 FY17 FY18