Delhi airport becomes first airport to run on hydro and solar power

Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) has become the first airport in India to operate entirely on hydro and solar power as it switched to renewable sources for its energy requirements.

The move will aid in the energy emissions reduction of 2 lakh tonnes of carbon dioxide per year, an important step toward reaching a Net Zero Carbon Emission Airport by 2030.

About 6% of the airport’s electricity need is met from the onsite solar power plants. These plants are on the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport's airside and on the roofs of the Cargo terminals.

Beginning June 1, 2022, Delhi Airport has adopted renewable energy usage from the hydropower plant for its demand of the remaining 94%, thus concluding its dependency on non-renewable power. This move will aid Delhi Airport in the decrease of indirect energy emissions of 200,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide every year.

For this, Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), a GMR Infrastructure Limited (GIL)-led consortium has inked a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) with a Himachal Pradesh-based hydropower producing firm for the hydroelectricity supply for the airport until 2036.

DIAL has a 7.84 MW solar plant on the airside, whereas as part of stakeholder cooperation, operators of the Cargo terminals have added another 5.3 MW rooftop solar plant at Delhi Airport.

DIAL has been functioning relentlessly towards environmental sustainability and has fixed its target to create Delhi Airport a Net Zero Carbon Emission airport by 2030, way ahead of the global target of 2050.

CEO-DIAL Videh Kumar Jaipuriar said to accomplish this, DIAL has adopted a Green Transportation program recently, and now we reached another milestone of the Green Energy Program for IGIA. Delhi Airport has been utilising solar power for a long time, and it is now fulfilling its major electricity demands from a hydropower plant.

DIAL has introduced TaxiBots at the IGI Airport in 2019 as part of environmental sustainability initiatives. The Taxibots used by airlines have aided decrease the fuel consumption by an aircraft during taxiing and also carbon emissions reduction.

DIAL has started the adoption of the electric vehicle and phased out all the diesel and petrol-run in a phased manner as a part of the Green Transportation Program. DIAL will procure 62 EVs that will enter the fleet in three to four months in the first phase.

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