Bengaluru, Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), operator of Kempegowda International Airport (BLR Airport) has been awarded the prestigious PEER (Performance Excellence in Electricity Renewal) platinum certification by Green Building Certification Inc. (GBCI), the foremost authority on sustainability in building design, construction, and operations.

The honour makes BIAL the first airport operator in the world to receive an outstanding score of 92/100 for its airport power infrastructure, stated BIAL in its official statement on Tuesday.

To ensure that the BLR Airport's power system continues to support its sustainable development goals, BIAL sought PEER certification to analyse and improve the airport's power system performance and was awarded the 'Platinum Rating' based on GBCI's rigorous certification and review process.

GBCI is the one of the world's leading sustainability and health certification and credentialing body and is responsible for administering the LEED green building program.

BIAL has demonstrated exceptional performance through its commitment to build sustainably. About 98 per cent of the project's distribution circuit is protected with distribution redundancy and auto restoration. It also has a 6.8 MW onsite solar PV system that supports essential services during grid failure and long-term blackout and 100 per cent of its energy mix comes from renewable energy.

Further, to achieving permanent reductions in its energy demand and consumption, BIAL has implemented energy conservation programmes such as replacement of all CFL (compact fluorescent lamp)/ Halogen lights with LED fixtures, PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) based Terminal Light Automation System (TLA) to monitor and minimise the energy consumption of terminal lights, and Chiller Plant Optimizer (CPO) solution for monitoring the operation and optimising the chiller plant performance under various load conditions.

Overall, through procurement of renewable energy, energy conservation measures and modernised system that prioritises sustainable, efficient power has helped the airport achieve energy savings of 14.7 million units (or kWh), cost savings of 84 million INR ($1.2 million), and mitigate about 46 kilotons of CO2 emissions annually.

Hari Marar MD and CEO, BIAL said: "We are proud to receive this recognition from GBCI for our relentless efforts in the energy conservation and energy resilience domain. As the operator of a world-class airport, BIAL has undertaken a variety of steps to deploy onsite renewable energy generation systems, offsite renewable power procurement, to meet our long-term goal of becoming Net Energy Neutral in 2020-21. Certified with PEER Platinum Rating will only motivate us to keep fast tracking our sustainability journey, even as we keep enhancing our infrastructure to meet the ever-increasing air transportation needs of passengers."

Mili Majumdar, Managing Director, GBCI India and Senior Vice-President, USGBC, said: "The Bangalore International Airport is an excellent example of how buildings and organisations can work together to achieve sustainability. At GBCI, we often say: the greenest building is the one that is already built. It can take up to 80 years to make up for the impact of demolishing an existing building and replacing it with a new one, even if the new building is extremely energy efficient.

"Existing buildings will be critical to decarbonisation efforts, as buildings account for nearly 40 per cent of all carbon emissions, and GBCI India is committed to working with developers, manufacturers, as well as small and medium enterprises to advance the greening of existing buildings. The Bangalore International Airport has excelled in its dedication towards sustainable development. We would like to congratulate Bangalore International Airport Ltd on achieving its PEER Platinum certification and urge other existing Airports to consider going green.