- Hawke’s Bay Airport has joined hands with Centralines for solar power capacity development at the airport
- Up to 10 MW solar farm is being planned west of the airport’s main runway through a limited liability partnership
- Power generated will be consumed by the airport for its own electricity requirements, and excess will be sold to external parties
The Hawke’s Bay Airport of New Zeland is exploring a commercial solar farm set up in a joint venture (JV) partnership with a local power distribution company Centralines with power production capacity of up to 10 MW. For the airport this move will help it to become the country’s first carbon neutral airport.
Both the partners have identified west of the airport’s main runway to set up the solar array.
Through this project, the airport hopes to consume enough clean power for its own requirements, while any surplus energy will be sold to external parties. It will help the airport diversify its revenue stream and contribute to its broader sustainability framework.
Under partnership with Centralines, the airport management will select technical partners and get the project to investment an ready state after which a limited liability partnership will be set up through which a viable project could be funded and developed in stages.
“We’re anticipating some significant innovation in the aviation industry, particularly post COVID-19 which could result in demand for electricity growing rapidly. This is already starting to happen on the landside of our business with electric and hybrid vehicles and if airlines pursue hybrid technology for short haul routes then this could grow exponentially,” said Hawke’s Bay Airport CEO Stuart Ainslie. “If this is the future then the scalable nature of the project will ensure the airport is in the best possible position to work collaboratively with key partners such as Air New Zealand”.
