Brisbane International Airport (BNE), located in the sunshine state of Queensland, Australia, is future-proofing itself with its two latest announcements – renewable energy and a third terminal. The Brisbane Airport Corporation (BAC) has signed an agreement with Stanwell Corporation to supply power from Queensland’s Clarke Creek Wind Farm to the airport hub. Brisbane Airport CEO Gert-Jan de Graaf commented on this exciting announcement:
“This energy deal delivers on Brisbane Airport Corporation’s commitment to be a sustainable world leading airport city. Queenslander’s can travel through our terminals knowing their journey begins and ends at one of the world’s most sustainable airports once this energy begins flowing from regional Queensland.”
Potential third terminal
The airport recognizes the booming post-pandemic demand, and with the Summer Olympics and Paralympics bound for Brisbane in 2032, the airport is mulling over building a third terminal to manage an increased number of passengers. Stephen Beckett from Brisbane Airport Corporation has acknowledged that the current terminals are already nearing capacity, with forecasts showing that the number of people passing through Brisbane International Airport will double by 2040, reaching 50 million passengers per annum. With plans for a third terminal to be ideally placed between the two runways, this will allow ease of taxiing time from the gate to take-off. The airport commented that the new terminal could cater to international and domestic passengers. Gert-Jan de Graff further commented:
“We’re looking at the best location, together with our airline partners, for where that new terminal will go. We think it will be in between the two runaways because that’s the perfect location to minimise aircraft taxiing, and it is close to our current domestic terminal”
Airlines currently servicing Brisbane will surely benefit from the 2032 games, bringing many international and domestic travelers. Even though the demand will be short-term, it firmly puts the city and airport on the map. Brisbane-based Virgin Australia CEO Jane Hrdlicka said that ”host cities can expect up to 500,000 additional international visitors throughout the games”.
Photo: Brisbane Airport
Renewable energy
By 2025, Brisbane Airport Corporation could be 100% powered by renewable energy, partnered with the Stanwell Corporation renewable energy pipeline that will feed up to 185GWh of energy. Queensland Energy Minister Mick de Brenni noted that the new partnership between Brisbane Airport and government-owned Stanwell should mean that the airport could meet its zero emissions commitment 25 years early. Brisbane Airport is already producing solar energy from a 6-megawatt system that feeds from over 18,000 panels installed across the airport. The airport announced today that it would increase this by adding another 5 megawatts of capacity onsite.
Photo: Brisbane Airport
Growth at Brisbane Airport
Brisbane Airport has seen a flurry of new services post-pandemic, most notable being United Airlines‘ new San Francisco to Brisbane service, Air Canada is also beefing up its direct service from Vancouver with now a daily connection. Australian airline Qantas is growing its footprint in Brisbane with new services to Japan.
Since the onset of the pandemic, some carriers are yet to return to Brisbane, Hawaiian Airlines had connected Honolulu with Brisbane, however there have been no prospects of this restarting in the short term. While Virgin Australia is still maintaining a cautious approach with its resumption of services, trans-Tasman is still a fraction of what it used to be.
Sources: ABC News, Brisbane Airport
