The Tripura Electricity Regulatory Commission has agreed to terms for the construction of 2 MW of solar capacity to power the newly constructed terminal at the Maharaj Bir Bikram Airport in Agartala. The terminal is expected to be operational in the coming months and will be the first solar-powered airport in the northeast. The commission reported that there would be no technical disturbance in grid stability after receiving a technical scrutiny report from the North Eastern Regional Power committee. It was also noted that the airport would need 1 MW of capacity to operate during the daytime. The excess power will be returned to the grid after sunset when the airport goes back to conventional power. The commission is also considering the installation of a net metering facility for the solar-powered airport.
Owing to initiatives by the Airport Authority of India (AAI), many airports across the country have set up solar capacities for electricity needs. The Cochin International Airport is fully powered by solar energy while solar projects have been installed at the airports in Bengaluru, Trivandrum, Hyderabad, Chennai, Trichy, Calicut, Vijayawada, and Tirupati. In December 2019, Vikram solar commissioned new solar projects at the airports in Dibrugarh in Assam, Gaya in Bihar, and Gondia in Maharashtra under the AAI. These projects have a cumulative capacity of 1165 kW. In September 2019, the AAI issued a tender for the installation of solar capacity at the Begumpet airport in Hyderabad.