High Altitude Platform Stations: the New Network Energy Efficiency Enabler in the 6G Era

The rapidly evolving communication landscape, with the advent of 6G technology, brings new challenges to the design and operation of wireless networks. One of the key concerns is the energy efficiency of the Radio Access Network (RAN), as the exponential growth in wireless traffic demands increasingly higher energy consumption. In this paper, we assess the potential of integrating a High Altitude Platform Station (HAPS) to improve the energy efficiency of a RAN, and quantify the potential energy conservation through meticulously designed simulations. We propose a quantitative framework based on real traffic patterns to estimate the energy consumption of the HAPS-integrated RAN and compare it with the conventional terrestrial RAN. Our simulation results elucidate that HAPS can significantly reduce energy consumption by up to almost 30% by exploiting the unique advantages of HAPS, such as its self-sustainability, high altitude, and wide coverage. We further analyze the impact of different system parameters on performance, and provide insights for the design and optimization of future 6G networks. Our work sheds light on the potential of HAPS-integrated RAN to mitigate the energy challenges in the 6G era, and contributes to the sustainable development of wireless communications.