Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) in Mumbai announced that it has completely switched to green energy sources for power consumption needs, making it one of India’s 100% sustainable airports.

CSMIA witnessed a surge in clean energy procurement with 57% in April 2022 to 98% between May and July. It attained the landmark 100% utilization of renewable energy sources in August 2022.

Around 5% of the airport’s electricity requirement is met through its onsite solar project, while the remaining 95% is from other green energy sources such as hydropower and wind.

The Mumbai international airport started adopting clean energy initiatives by installing a 1.06 MW rooftop solar system, which was later upgraded to 4.66 MW.

Earlier this year, CSMIA deployed a 10 kW hybrid solar system consisting of a 2 kW turbo mill and 8 kW solar photovoltaic modules with an estimated minimum energy generation of 36 kWh/day.

The 10 kW pilot project also ensured the mitigation of around 120,000 tons of carbon emissions annually, helping CSMIA move closer to its target of net zero by 2029.

CSMIA aims to reduce approximately 3,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions by conversion of belt-driven fans of air handling units with electronically commutated (EC) fans, replacing cooling tower fills with energy-efficient fills, and replacement of conventional lamps with LEDs, to conserve energy.

The airport also aims to adopt internet of things-based (IoT) temperature monitoring system at Terminal 2 to optimize the energy consumption of the air conditioning system through technological upgradation in its pipeline. It also aims to convert conventional fuel vehicles into electric vehicles.

The Minister of State, Ministry of Civil Aviation V K Singh, informed Parliament that airports across India had taken steps to reduce their carbon footprint. These steps include substituting non-renewable energy with renewable energy sources such as solar panels, wind, and hydro, rationalizing operating times/ procedures, and using alternative fuels in ground-handling vehicles.

Last year, the GMR Hyderabad International Airport commissioned its second 5 MW solar project and increased its solar power capacity to 10 MW. Solar projects are installed at various airports, including Bengaluru, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, Hyderabad, Chennai, Calicut, Trichy, Vijayawada, and Tirupati.