Kannur airport plots 100-MW solar farm on land set aside for second runway
The Kannur International Airport Limited (KIAL) has proposed building a 100-megawatt (MW) solar power project on land it had acquired for a possible second runway. Airport officials say the project could help meet Kerala’s peak-hour electricity demand while generating revenue from land that is unlikely to be needed for runway expansion for at least 25 to 30 years.
Speaking to The Hindu, KIAL Chief Operating Officer Aswani Kumar said the proposal followed an assessment of passenger traffic and future runway requirements. The project is awaiting government approval, after which an Expression of Interest (EoI) will be invited.
KIAL holds about 483 acres earmarked for the second runway, most of which is currently unused. Rough estimates suggest that 4.5 acres are needed for every 1 MW of solar generation, meaning the land could support roughly 100 MW. Mr. Kumar noted that the terrain slopes southward, which is ideal for solar panels. He added that the site could theoretically generate up to 130 MW, but the undulating ground may cap practical capacity at around 100 MW.
Several major firms, including NTPC, BPCL, IOCL, NLC, and the airport’s existing solar contractor Oriana Power, have reportedly expressed interest in the project. However, regulatory and financial issues remain, particularly regarding the tariff at which the electricity can be sold.
KIAL has received an informal indication from the Kerala State Electricity Board of a tariff below ₹3 per unit. Officials say that such a rate could make a battery-backed project financially unviable. The final tariff would only be determined after a bidding process and identification of the power purchaser.
Under the proposed model, an investor would build the solar plant with battery storage and sell the power to a designated buyer under a long-term agreement. The project is expected to require more than ₹500 crore, potentially reaching ₹700 crore including battery storage. The benchmark cost for solar generation without storage is around ₹5 crore per MW.
In parallel, the airport is working to make its existing 4-MW solar project fully operational. The project, which began trial operations in June, consists of 2.25 MW of ground-mounted panels and 1.75 MW mounted over the car parking area.
According to KIAL Head of Engineering M.K. Abdul Zalam, the 4-MW system is designed mainly to meet the airport’s daytime electricity needs. The airport consumes about 4.88 lakh units per month, with roughly half of that during daylight hours. “The idea is to neutralise our daytime consumption with solar power,” Mr. Zalam said.
The airport has already started trial generation using its internal system. Final approvals from the Kerala State Electricity Board for grid connectivity and a banking agreement are pending. Once those are in place, surplus daytime power can be exported to the grid.
Mr. Zalam highlighted the complexity of the tariff structure. Electricity supplied during peak hours (6 p.m. to 10 p.m.) costs about 1.5 times the normal rate, so merely matching physical consumption would not make the airport tariff-neutral. To fully offset its electricity bill, the airport would need around 8.5 MW of solar capacity.
The current monthly electricity bill is approximately ₹90 lakh. The 4-MW project is expected to cut that by about ₹35 lakh per month. The project is part of a broader effort by KIAL to reduce its carbon footprint and operational costs, while the larger 100-MW proposal could contribute significantly to Kerala’s renewable energy capacity.
