Cork Airport said today it plans to build the country’s largest solar-powered carport, in conjunction with Waterford-based Greenvolt Next, by summer of 2027.
A solar carport is a dual-purpose structure, where a canopy is being constructed and fitted with a roof of photovoltaic (PV) panels.
The solar carport will provide shelter for parked cars in the airport’s Holiday Blue car park while also generating up to 20% of Cork airport’s electricity needs into the future.
The project is expected to be completed in August 2027 and is being grant supported by the Department of Transport and Department of Climate, Environment and Energy.
Cork Airport saw its busiest year ever for passenger traffic last year, with a total of 3.46 million passengers. It was also named as Europe’s Best Regional Airport by Airports Council International (ACI) Europe.
The new carport, which is being constructed over the existing Holiday Blue car park, shall be rolled out in two phases – the first of which will start in early summer, with the second stage planned for October. Once completed in late summer 2027, it is envisaged that the 3,696 solar panels and five inverters will generate 1.5 GWh of renewable energy each year for the airport.
Cork Airport said the works on the construction of the new solar carport will be followed by an extension to the existing Holiday Blue Car Park, with 669 more long-term car parking spaces.
Niall MacCarthy, Managing Director of Cork Airport, said the airport acknowledged the support of daa Group, the Department of Transport and the Department of Climate, Environment and Energy for making this “exciting” project happen.
“We will meet our 2030 energy reduction targets and we are proud to confirm that,” he added.
Owen Power, CEO of Greenvolt Next Ireland, said the company’s aim is to make renewable energy easy, and this solar carport does exactly that by enabling Cork Airport to be more resourceful, have more control, and use more reliable infrastructure.
“It will also deliver tangible benefits from both a financial and environmental perspective. We look forward to working with Cork Airport to both creating the largest solar carport in Ireland and future-proofing the aviation sector,” he added.
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