Geothermal News
India Opens a New Airport Terminal Powered Entirely by Geothermal Heating and Cooling
The $67 million project made the airport in Leh become the first in the country to have a fully-functional geothermal conditioning system.
India might have just set the precedent this month for more airports to consider tapping into geothermal resources when it comes to harnessing energy to heat and cool its buildings.
A passenger terminal at the Kushok Bakula Rimpocheee Airport in Leh Ladakh opened late last week becoming the first airport in the country to have a fully-functional geothermal conditioning system. According to a report from the office of Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the terminal, which cost an estimated $67 million to construct, now features borehole fields supplying hot water in addition to the terminal’s heating and cooling needs.
What’s particularly intriguing about the project is the fact that the airport sits roughly 10,500 feet above sea level, with the energy being generated arriving from 457 total boreholes, with each drill depth ranging from 360-390 feet per borehole.
The move is one of many according to the release in efforts to “harness Ladakh’s renewable energy potential, as there are a number of projects planned in the region to strengthen everything from electricity networks to tapping into hydropower.
India is just the latest nation to look into geothermal for large-scale projects. Hungary, China, and Poland have all adopted thermal energy networks at their airports but the difference here is that with the Kushok Bakula Rimpocheee Airport being one of the highest airports in the world in terms of elevation, the project is the latest technological marvel driving major drilling success.
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