Cochin Airport becomes first in India to be fully powered by solar energy

The Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL), at the time of its construction, was in the news for being the first ever Indian airport to be built on the PPP mode. Years later, CIAL is again hogging the limelight for something unique.

On Tuesday, when the airport was officially declared the country’s first airport to be fully powered by solar energy, the world stood up to applaud the endeavor. The 12 MW solar power project went on stream, imparting joy to the whole of India.

It was in March 2013 that the thought of going solar ignited the minds of those behind the Cochin International Airport. From then on, work has been progressing in full pace. The first step came in the form of a 100 kWp photo voltaic plant that was installed atop the arrival terminal.

Years later, this Tuesday, work reached a culmination point, and CIAL went all out in declaring that the airport has turned fully solar-driven. An area spread across 45 acres was laid with photo voltaic panels, which is now capable of generating up to 60,000 units of electricity on a daily basis.

Built at a cost of Rs 62 crore, the solar power project has made CIAL fully self-reliant in terms of power needs.  The project is capable of providing the entire power needs of the international airport. Going by what the CIAL officials feel, “the airport will have 50000 to 60000 units of electricity per day to be consumed for all its operational functions, which technically makes the airport absolutely power neutral”.

A first in the history of Indian airports, the CIAL solar power project generates power through the 46,150 solar panels laid out on the 45-acre stretch. The effort will also go down in history as the single largest solar project constructed in an airport in India.

For Bosch Energy and Building Solutions, the company behind the execution of the unique project, it is a green mission accomplished, as they are now sure that the airport would now be called ‘grid power-neutral’.

Ahead of the inauguration of the solar power project by Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, CIAL Managing Director V J Kurian told the media that the airport’s entire power requirement of about 52,000 units daily will be met by the solar plants installed.

With the effort bearing fruit, Kerala has yet again shown the way to the rest of the country on how to bring ideas to fruition. In the process, that state has also taken a leap into being ultimately eco-friendly.

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