The Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) signed an MoU with Muziris Heritage Project Limited. The MoU will allow tours in Kochi-Muziris heritage tourism circuit on CIAL’s solar boat.
The cruise will add a new mode of revenue stream for CIAL till the canal project is completed, officials said.
CIAL owns a 24-seater solar boat with an AC compartment for trial operation in the west coast canal renovated by its subsidiary, Kerala Waterways and Infrastructures Limited (KWIL).
“As the tourism sector in the state has started witnessing a surge, CIAL decided to try out a new revenue stream by deploying its solar boat for cruise activity until the canal project is completed,” CIAL said in a release.
The boat has 15 solar panels mounted upon its roof. The generated power is stored in the battery. The system can also draw power from conventional sources. The boat can be put into operation for five hours on single charging, the release said.
Earlier this year, in February, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated the first phase of the canal by taking a short cruise in this solar boat at the Veli-Kadinamkulam stretch of the canal in Thiruvananthpuram.
