Mumbai International Airport Becomes Another of India’s 100% Green Energy Airports
Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) has joined India’s growing collection of one hundred per-cent sustainable airports by switching to renewable energy.
Their sustainable energy timeline 2022
CSMIA rapidly progressed into a 100 per-cent renewably powered airport in a matter of months.
- April 2022 – 57 per-cent renewable energy sources.
- May/July 2022 – 98 per-cent renewable energy sources.
- August – 100 per-cent renewable energy sources.
The airport now sources 95 per-cent of their energy from hydro and wind and 5 per-cent from its 4.66 MW rooftop solar plant and Hybrid Solar Mills.
A CSMIA spokesperson said:
“We are extremely delighted to achieve this key milestone in our journey towards attaining a sustainable future for CSMIA. The diligent efforts of the airport in undertaking several thoughtful initiatives have paved the way to achieve this feat. As CSMIA aspires to become net-zero by 2029, this landmark event further encourages us to stay committed to our efforts in enhancing the operational efficiency of the airport while operating on fully renewable energy.”
Other 100 per-cent green energy airports in India
The Cochin International airport was the world’s first airport to operate solely on solar power in 2015 and the first completely power-neutral airport. The airport has 46,150 solar panels across 45 acres creating up to 60,000 units of electricity for the airport.
The Indira Gandhi International Airport was the second airport in India to run entirely on hydro and solar power. The airport sources 6 per-cent of their electricity from onsite solar plants with the other 94 per-cent sourced from hydropower plants.
The Indian government has been actively promoting the use of green energy at their airports to encourage sustainability. In March 2022 the Minister of State for Civil Aviation said:
“The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has taken initiatives for working towards Carbon neutrality and achieving net zero carbon emission at airports in the country and organized knowledge sharing sessions to standardise Carbon Accounting and Reporting framework of Indian Airports as well as to create awareness on Climate Change mitigation. Further, airport operators with scheduled operations have been advised to map the carbon emission at their respective airports and to work towards carbon neutrality & net zero emission in a phased manner.”
The use of renewable energy sources is vital to enable airports to hit their sustainability targets and India is making huge advances in this area. Already, over 50 airports in India use solar power.
For more articles on sustainable airports see The IAP Developing a Sustainable Air Hub in Singapore Blueprint.
Article by Jess Brownlow
