More Indian Airports Set To Go Solar

Recently, the Kochi airport in the south Indian state of Kerala switched to solar power and created headlines across the world. Now, another airport is set to adopt solar power to meet a majority of its power needs.

The Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose airport in Kolkata will have a utility-scale solar power project of 15 to 20 MW capacity. The project will be set up over a 55 acres area and would meet 60% of the airport’s power needs. The airport authorities will soon launch tender for the implementation of the project, with financial resources worth $20 million already having been allocated for the project. The project will be able to meet the entire demand of the airport during the day, but during the night the airport would be required to purchase power from the grid.

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) recently announced that major airports in the western state of Rajasthan would also set up solar power projects to meet a part of their power demand. The Jaipur airport already has a 100 kW rooftop solar power system and is planning to set up a 1.8 MW ground-based power project. Airports at Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, and Bikaner are also planning to set up rooftop projects.

Other Indian airports have also set up solar power projects to meet a part of the demand, as well as earn additional revenue. Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, operated by GMR Infrastructure, has a solar power project registered under the Renewable Energy Certificates schemes.

Large commercial and industrial consumers in India are increasingly looking to set up renewable energy projects to meet their power demand, instead of relying on traditional supply from utilities. Power tariffs levied by utilities have been increasing rapidly, but quality and consistency in supply has improved.