In a bid to reduce the operational cost of running the country’s airports, the Ministry of Aviation is moving towards the option of using renewable energy in the various airports across the country
This indication was made by the Minister for Aviation, when the Indian High Commissioner, Mr Birender Singh Yadav, paid a courtesy call on him in Accra at the Ministry, on Wednesday.
He noted that ministry is currently exploring ways by which it could apply renewable energy to the running the country’s airport facilities in order to reduce the cost of utilities.
“Our cost here in terms of utilities, particularly electricity is quite exorbitant,” he lamented.
“For the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), which is really a small portion of the airport operations, we are paying abut GHc 2 million per month for electricity and in the case of smaller airports like the Tamale airport, we are paying GHc 80,000 per month for electricity,” he revealed.
“Certainly, if we could get some collaborative ventures developed perhaps through Public Private Partnership’s, it would make business sense. With this, we can save on the cost of electricity and then use that to service the capital investment that was used in the construction Terminal 3 at the Kotoka International Airport.”
The High Commissioner noted that his country will be ready to help Ghana adopt the use of renewable energy in running its airport facilities, since India has a working example of an airport that solely runs on renewable energy.
The Aviation Minister said, noted that the ministry will soon undergo a redesigning of the Terminal 3 drainage and sewage systems.
Ghana’s renewable energy master plan constitutes an investment-focused framework for the development and promotion of the country’s rich renewable energy resources to propel economic growth, improve social life and reduce climate change effects.
