Bengaluru International Airport Partners with Bosch India to Generate Solar Power for its Operations

With solar power usage, Bengaluru International Airport is expected to help reduce CO2 emissions by 3625 tonnes per annum.

Bosch Limited, a leading supplier of technology and services, has commissioned two solar power projects for the Bengaluru International Airport Limited (BIAL) the first project of 440kW has been installed in the car park area in front of the BIAL corporate office, and the second project of 2.5MW solar panels at the airside. Both projects – jointly – will reduce carbon emission by 3625 tonnes per annum (3075 tonnes of CO2 emission per annum at the airside and 550 tonnes of CO2 emission per annum at the car park area). The projects executed by the Bosch Limited, will generate approximately 4.4 Mio units of electricity, annually.

Speaking on the occasion of the commissioning of the projects at the Bengaluru Airport, Mr. Hari Marar, President – Airport Operations BIAL, commented, “BIAL has constantly endeavored to create an enabling environment through its various green initiatives. We have focused on sustainability and embarked on adopting renewable energy as part of our overall green vision. We aim to achieve 50% of our energy needs through renewable power in the next 3 years. We will continue our effort to look at newer methods to operate our business in an ecologically sustainable environment.”

Both the projects have undergone a rigorous quality process to ensure an active life of 20 years. “Airports are a focus vertical for Bosch. Beyond solar projects, we have security technology and energy efficiency solutions for this sector,” stated Mr. Soumitra Bhattacharya, president, Bosch Group India. It is crucial for India to have in place a sustainable energy infrastructure. Committed to that vision, Bosch India offers customised solutions for commercial and industrial clients across sections, such as airports, automotive industry, dairy, and seaports, among others. “Energy solutions from Bosch India will help our industrial and commercial customers reduce their energy expenditure,” commented Mr. Bhattacharya, further.

Since 2011, Bosch has executed around 120 solar projects pan-India. “We are excited about our progress, and soon our installed capacity will touch 100 MW,” said Mr. Venugopalan CM, head, Bosch India Energy business. Having commissioned projects for key clients across India, Bosch is well-equipped to design and engineer solar project installations with varying complexities. Until now, the team has executed rooftops, ground-mounted, car-parking to lagoon-type installations. This strength is further complemented by an experienced project management team.

Both projects were designed keeping in mind the uniqueness of their locations – the 440kW project located at the car park area has been designed to optimize land usage enabling the generation of more than 6 lakh units of power, annually, and double as a car park for about 160 cars; due to the proximity to the runway, the 2.5MW project has been additionally designed to sustain high wind speeds.

Bengaluru Airport is designed to ensure that the city of Bengaluru not only gets an airport that is world-class in terms of service and efficiency, but also ensures the long-term wellbeing of the environment and the community around it. The airport’s green canvas includes integration of sustainable practices across business verticals and includes infrastructure, terminal operations, information technology, corporate functions and project management. Bengaluru airport – in April 2017 – was certified a carbon neutral airport for effectively offsetting carbon emissions at the airport through a series of focused initiatives.