Britain’s largest airport solar installation to date has been completed at Stobart Group's London Southend Airport, part of a £10m terminal expansion completed by Kier Construction.
A total of 496 solar panels will supply the terminal's expanded range of shops, cafes and restaurants with clean solar electricity for decades to come, via the airport's private electricity network.
The airport became Europe's fastest growing last year, recently passing the one million passenger barrier, and was voted Britain's best in a survey by Which? magazine.
The new solar system was installed by Reading-based Photon Energy on the terminal's curved tunnel-shaped roofs, with panels supplied by Conergy, one of the world's leading PV solution and service providers, for Integral plc, which delivered the mechanical and electrical aspects of the terminal expansion.
The panels are expected to help the terminal achieve a BREEAM Very Good environmental assessment rating, and to avoid around 1,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions over the next twenty years.
David Lister, London Southend Airport Operations Director, said: "We are delighted to add the provision of clean solar electricity to a range of 'green' initiatives we've introduced as the terminal has developed.
"Environmentally-friendly initiatives are very important to us and the whole building has been designed to incorporate a number of them, including sustainable drainage, specialist coating to improve insulation, extensive glazing to enhance natural lighting and slow start escalators."
Jonathan Bates, Managing Director, Photon Energy, commented: "Solar is Britain's favourite renewable energy and it's great London Southend Airport has shown its commitment to self-generation.
"You can't necessarily see the panels from the ground but millions of people will get a bird's eye view of them as they take off or come in to land. Airport terminals are great places for solar as they have a lot of roofspace and large daytime electricity consumption."
Robert Goss, Managing Director, Conergy UK & Ireland, added: “The recent flooding and heavy rain are a reminder of why the buildings we put up today should consider the climate of tomorrow and produce as much zero-carbon energy as possible.
"The British solar industry can easily turn otherwise unused rooftops into mini-power stations, reducing demand on the grid and the need to import and burn coal or gas.
"Public and private sector organisations across the country should look at London Southend Airport and work out how they too can produce and consume their own clean electricity."