Solar-powered Hubballi Airport is Karnataka first 'green airport'

Hubballi Airport has become the first 'green airport' in the state following the commissioning of an 8MW solar power plant on its premises. The green energy generated here will be sufficient to light up six airports in the state, GPS-aided GEO augmented navigation (GAGAN) installation and Bagalur residential quarters in Bengaluru.

"One more feather in the cap of our Hubballi Airport. To achieve Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream of producing 50 per cent energy from renewable energy by 2030, now Hubballi Airport has become 100 per cent Green Airport as an 8MWp grid-connected solar power plant at Hubballi Airport is commissioned," tweeted Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Pralhad Joshi.

As part of green initiation, the Airport Authority of India (AAI) has taken up the solar plant project at Hubballi Airport to promote green and renewable energy. Under the Sustainable Green Airport Mission (SUGAM) programme, Rs 43 crore has been spent to set up an 8MWp solar power plant on the airport premises.

For the installation of the power plant, 38 acres of land on the south of the runway of the airport was given in mid-2019. Bagging the tender for the ground-mounted grid-connected photovoltaic solar plant, the Gujarat-based Madhav Infra Projects Limited installed 22,500 solar modules in an area of 550m x 215m which are now generating renewable energy.

The electricity generated here will light up airports at Hubballi, Belagavi, Mysuru, Ballari radar station, and the installation of GAGAN and Bagalur residential quarters in Bengaluru. Kalaburagi Airport was also proposed to be added to the list of beneficiary airports and will become a 100 per cent green airport.

It is said the electricity generated here will fulfill the power needs of the aforesaid airport buildings and it will help the AAI to save approximately Rs 8.5 crore per annum.

The solar plant generates 140 lakh units of electricity annually and the power is directly supplied to the Hubli Electricity Supply Company (Hescom) grid located in Tarihal, from there it will be supplied to other airports and the GAGAN office with the help of other Escoms.

Hubballi Airport Director Pramod Thakre said after the installation work of the solar plant, recent testing, wheeling and banking agreement with the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited (KPTCL) has been completed and the plant was commissioned on November 8.

Joshi thanked Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia for supporting his idea of making Hubballi Airport a green airport.