Connectivity issues in northern Sweden and Finland hinder maintenance teams at windmill parks, prompting an investigation into using turbine towers as cellular base stations. While offshore turbines offer high terraces for antennas, onshore sites require mounting equipment on the rotating nacelle to leverage existing power and cabling at heights exceeding 100 meters. Feasibility measurements conducted near Piteå in September 2025 revealed that a single turbine tower can cause approximately 20 dB of signal attenuation at 2.4 GHz and 3.8 GHz, primarily due to concrete and steel structures, though blade interference appears less severe. These findings highlight the need for further analysis to determine if windmill towers can effectively support backup microwave links or serve as primary 5G/6G infrastructure in remote areas.
Source: https://www.6gflagship.com/news/remote-area-connectivity-a-windmill-park-use-case/
Keywords: windmill towers, signal attenuation, remote connectivity, arctic 6g, base station mounting