The Cochin International Airport Limited’s (CIAL) solar energy utilisation programme has been completed, and 400 solar panel units have been installed, airport authorities said in a press release on Thursday.
Documents have already been submitted to the Kerala State Electrical Inspectorate for necessary approval, they added. The installation has the capacity to produce 100KW. But only 450 units per day will be utilised initially, mainly for running the air conditioning plant.
The panels are made of poly crystalline silicon, each with a capacity to produce 250 watts of electricity. The power generated from the panels can be connected to the grid without causing any disruption in supply.
Airport PRO Dominic Fernandez said that CIAL were planning to build a second solar power unit with a capacity of 1 MW.
The Rs 98-lakh project is being executed by a Kolkata company. Based on the agreement, the company will be responsible for maintenance for the next 10 years. As the project had been subsidised by the Central Government to the tune of 30 per cent under Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission, CIAL’s share of expenditure was only Rs 63 lakhs, he said.