800 million kWh of electricity a year! Continuously winning bids! PV industry eyes this "big electricity user"!

This year, photovoltaic (PV) professionals have their sights set on airports.

With the end of the era of full grid access and the advent of market-based electricity trading, more and more PV projects are prioritizing the search for optimal energy consumption scenarios.

This year, while reviewing successful PV EPC (Electronic Photovoltaic Construction) projects, I've noticed a surge in the number of airports. Airports in major cities like Shanghai, Guangzhou, Zhengzhou, and Chongqing have all begun installing rooftop PV systems.

Looking at the PV projects awarded this year within airports and their supporting areas, the scale of these projects ranges from 1-2 MW to 30+ MW, with winning bids generally ranging from 2 to 3+ RMB/W (regardless of E-level).

It's not just large airports in provincial capitals; even smaller airports are beginning to implement PV projects. As a sector of the transportation sector, airport expansion and construction are accelerating.

So, how much electricity does an airport actually consume?

It's understood that the annual electricity consumption of large airport terminals typically ranges from tens of millions to hundreds of millions of kilowatt-hours, with power consumption typically ranging from 10,000 to 40,000 kilowatts (kW) or even higher. The electricity consumption of a large airport terminal is primarily comprised of several components, including air conditioning, lighting, transportation, information, and commercial facilities. Air conditioning systems account for the lion's share of this demand.

As we all know, an airport handles tens of thousands of flights daily, and lighting, air conditioning, and equipment operation rely almost entirely on electricity. For example, according to public information, Beijing Daxing Airport consumes approximately 800 million kWh of electricity annually, making it a veritable power hog.

Of course, Daxing Airport's energy consumption and carbon emissions are significantly higher. Due to its large size, numerous energy-consuming systems, high population density, and long operating hours, the terminal's energy consumption can typically reach two to four times that of a large public building. However, annual electricity consumption for a large airport typically exceeds 100 million kWh.

For such a high-energy scenario, photovoltaics are a natural choice. Compared with other transportation scenarios, airports are definitely high-quality scene resources. First of all, in terms of area, an airport occupies a much larger area than a railway station and bus station. For example, Shanghai Pudong International Airport has a total area of ​​approximately 57.0 square kilometers.

What a concept! Consider that the Macao Special Administrative Region has a land area of ​​approximately 32.9 square kilometers. This means that Pudong Airport alone is 1.7 times the land area of ​​Macao itself.

Thus, in addition to the terminal building, non-runway vacant areas, logistics warehouses, air cargo terminals, customs warehouses, public parking areas, main office buildings, and other areas are all suitable for photovoltaic installation. From last year to this year, airport photovoltaic construction has continued uninterrupted.

On November 21st of last year, the groundbreaking ceremony for the Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport photovoltaic project was held. With a planned installed capacity of 30MW, the project is currently the largest distributed photovoltaic power generation project at a civil airport in China.

According to reports, the Jiangbei International Airport photovoltaic project, invested by China General Nuclear Power Wind Power Co., Ltd., has a total investment of over 100 million yuan. The project covers approximately 280,000 square meters of Jiangbei Airport and plans to install 21,798 monocrystalline silicon bifacial photovoltaic panels, equipped with 110 inverters. Upon completion, the photovoltaic power generation capacity is expected to reach 24 million kWh annually, accounting for 10% of the airport's total annual electricity consumption, and is expected to reduce carbon emissions by approximately 20,000 tons annually. In addition, on August 30th of last year, Yunnan Energy Investment Group's 5MW distributed photovoltaic project at Kunming Changshui Airport officially connected to the grid for power generation.

On September 5, 2024, the 11.6MW distributed photovoltaic power station project on the rooftop of Urumqi International Airport passed acceptance.

On November 1, 2024, construction began on the 12MW distributed photovoltaic project at Zhanjiang Wuchuan International Airport. On November 21, 2024, construction began on the 30MW photovoltaic project at Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport. On November 26, 2024, the 13.6MW photovoltaic project in areas north of runways one and three at Pudong Airport officially began operations. On November 25, 2024, construction began on the 5.226MW distributed photovoltaic project at Guangzhou Airport Logistics Group.

In addition to domestic airports, international airports such as Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Tokyo International Airport, California International Airport, Athens International Airport, Hawaii International Airport, and Indianapolis International Airport have all installed photovoltaic power plants. Indianapolis International Airport boasts one of the world's largest airport solar farms, generating enough electricity annually to power 10,000 people. Cochin International Airport in India is the first airport in the world to use photovoltaic power generation to meet all its electricity needs!

Airport + PV: How much market is left?

According to the latest national civil transport airport layout plan, 20 projects have officially begun construction, including Hohhot Shengle International Airport in Inner Mongolia and Xiamen Xiang'an International Airport in Fujian, which are not far from official opening. Furthermore, three projects have received feasibility study approval, 10 have received project approval, and over 40 have received site selection approval.

A typical large international airport covers approximately 10-20 square kilometers. Based on the area for distributed PV installation, an area of ​​0.6-1 square kilometers can accommodate approximately 100MW of PV capacity.

If we calculate based on a 100MW installed capacity, there will be 263 civil transport airports nationwide in 2024, 262 of which will have scheduled flights. Including new airports under construction and those already under construction, the future installed capacity of airport PV is estimated to reach 10-20GW.

Why are PV professionals so drawn to airports?

From an airport operations perspective:

Photovoltaic power generation projects utilize unused space at airports, effectively utilizing solar energy resources. This provides clean, renewable energy for airport operations, lowering operating costs, reducing carbon emissions, and enhancing the airport's environmental image and operational profitability. Furthermore, under the airport-plus-photovoltaic model, if a local power grid failure or outage occurs, the photovoltaic power generation system can continue to provide power to critical airport equipment and facilities, enhancing the airport's energy system's resilience and emergency response capabilities, and ensuring smooth operations.

From a photovoltaic project investment perspective:

Airport photovoltaic projects offer significant benefits: They are supported by both national and industry policies;

Good land conditions: Airports have concentrated land resources and do not involve sensitive areas such as cultivated land and forests;

Low construction costs: Short internal collection lines within airports eliminate the need for large-scale road construction or renovation;

Low unit investment: Compared with mountain photovoltaic power plants, the per-kilowatt investment is lower, offering significant construction cost advantages.

Compared with the early days when components cost more than one yuan or even several yuan per watt, the current price of photovoltaics has become very affordable, with the cost reduction of about 30%-40%. In today's context where consumption is king and land is scarce, airports, as major electricity consumers, are naturally the best choice.