Cellcom Further Invests in Chambers Island Green Cell Site

In an effort to harvest more energy at its Chambers Island cell site during the dark winter months, Cellcom has further invested in the green cell site. The site on Chambers Island is one of Cellcom’s two alternative-energy cell sites that use a combination of solar panels and a wind turbine to operate.

Solar power is the cell site’s main energy source, and it steadily climbs beginning in March, with peak energy from the sun occurring in June through August. Solar power reaches minimum output in late October through February, when cloud cover is heaviest. To compensate for the decreased sunlight during these months, Cellcom added a new, larger wind turbine to capture more wind energy for the cell site.

“In the past we’ve had to constantly adjust the capacity of the cell site during winter months due to the lack of energy being produced,” said Bob Sobieck, director of RF engineering at Cellcom. “The new wind turbine addresses this issue and capitalizes on the increasing wind speeds that occur from October through February.”

The renewable energy cell site was built and turned on in 2008 in response to the insufficient cellular coverage on the island and along the western shore of Door County.