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THE SMALLEST AND least known of Spain’s Canary Islands, El Hierro, is making a splash by becoming the first island in the world fully energy self-sufficient through combined water and wind power.
A wind farm opening at the end of June will turn into electricity the gusts that rake the steep cliffs and green mountains of the volcanic island off the Atlantic coast of Africa.
Its five turbines installed at the northeastern tip of El Hierro near the capital Valverde will have a total output of 11.5 megawatts – more than enough power to meet the demand of the island’s roughly 10,000 residents and its energy-hungry water desalination plants.
Although other islands around the world are powered by solar or wind energy, experts say El Hierro is the first to secure a constant supply of electricity by combining wind and water power and with no connection to any outside electricity network.
Surplus power from the wind turbines will be used to pump fresh water from a reservoir near the harbour to a larger one at volcanic crater located about 700 metres above sea level.
When there is little or no wind, the water will be channelled down to the lower reservoir through turbines to generate electricity in turn.
“This system guarantees us a supply of electricity,” said the director of the Gorona del Viento wind power plant, Juan Manuel Quintero who is supervising final tests before the plant starts functioning in a few weeks.
The plant will account for 50 per cent of the island’s electricity demand when it is officially inaugurated at the end of June, a figure that will rise to 100 per cent over the following months.
The scheme will cut carbon dioxide emissions by 18,700 tonnes per year and eliminate the island’s annual consumption of 40,000 barrels of oil.
El Hierro will maintain its fuel oil power station as a back up, just in case.
Pioneer project
The island is cited as a pioneering project by IRENA, the international organisation for renewable energy, and other experts such as Alain Gioda, a climate historian at France IRD science research institute. He said:
The true novelty of El Hierro is that technicians have managed, without being connected to any national network, to guarantee a stable production of electricity, that comes 100 percent from renewable energy, overcoming the intermittent nature of the wind.
El Hierro’s wind power plant has sparked interest from other islands seeking to follow its example.
Officials from Aruba, Hawaii, Samso in Denmark, Oki in Japan, and Indonesia have all shown interest.
“It is a project which is considered at the world level as a pioneer and it is one of the most important in the production of renewable energy,” said the president of island’s local council, Alpidio Armas.
“El Hierro can be a sort of laboratory,” he added, providing an example to other islands around the world which are home to around 600 million people.
El Hierro, the westernmost of Spain’s Canary Islands, has also been invited to present its project at several international conferences, including in Malta and South Korea.
Electric vehicles
El Hierro wants to extend its environmental credentials even further by ensuring that by 2020 all of its 6,000 vehicles are run on electricity thanks to an agreement with the Renault-Nissan alliance.
The wind power plant cost €80 million to build.
The island authorities own 60 percent of the plant, with 30 per cent held by Spanish energy company Endesa – a subsidiary of Italian group Enel – and 10 per cent by a local technology institute.
“We wanted to be the owners of the majority of the plant. That means that the profits as well as the possible losses, that is the destiny of Gorona del Viento, is the responsibility of the residents of the island,” said Armas.
Revenues from the plant will boost the island’s budget by about €1m to €3m per year, he said.
“These are revenues that can go to the local residents, to subsidise water prices, infrastructure, social policies,” he said.
El Hierro, designated by UNESCO as a Biosphere Reserve with 60 per cent of its territory of 278 square kilometres protected to preserve its natural diversity, also hopes its green energy drive will draw visitors interested in nature and science.
“We cannot turn down the benefits that tourism brings, but we don’t want mass tourism,” said Armas.
- © AFP 2014.
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Shame we don’t have wind and water in this country.. Oh!
Proof it can be done.
More difficult when the suits have you tied to their grid.
And the population is 400 times the size! Also cost €80 million and saving €1.5 million a year is a sizeable payback period! Nice to have the guarantee of your own power source all the same!
Am I right Ted in my calculations that we would need 20,000 of these turbines to do same?
Actually if the math is that 1 turbine roughly is enough for 2000 people then it’d be 2000 turbines for 4 million! It seems like an absurd amount of people to survive on one turbine, any energy experts care to weigh in on this one!
Just shows what happens if you don’t sell your natural resources
Just shows you what happens when you dont sell your sole to the devil
*soul
Why would you sell a fish to the devil
I even found that a bit funny to be honest
Could be a sole trader!!!
Needs to be far more of this sort of thing. Imagine the cash it would free up if we didn’t have to import huge volumes of fossil fuel.
Wouldn’t make a difference. The bankers and politicians would steal it all.
So what then, P. O’Neill? Just not try?
Sorry but this is pie in the sky talk and delusional
Great island, scuba divers and hill walkers paradice. And both activities are organised by an Irish family. Worth a visit
Was there 10 yr ago. Lovely place lovely people smashing food
Why were they smashing food? They sound like an aggressive bunch
Wouldn’t happen here. Too many muppets protesting.
…exactly: in this country people are objecting left/right/centre to wind turbines as it is. Imagine if the Dutch did that all those years ago………… ??
…can’t wait for the fracking then :)
Really really great to see this! If only Tesla was still alive and if only people weren’t money hungry corrupt pigs
Agree with johnny . I have been a few times to the island . A really beautiful place both above and below water .
Nice to read about.
Jesus somebody tell Michael Lowery there is money in wave energy and like the mobile affair we will be up and running in 6 months. Just keep the brown envelope until it is up and running.
They might get a bigger wave than they bargain for…..
To tell you the truth NATO pushing Russia into Conflict is a far greater concern to anyone than a land slide at Cumbre Vieja.
Frank, if it ever happens feel free to take a walk on a beach somewhere.
Remembering the ‘Spirit of Ireland’ idea. Shudda – Wudda – Cudda
They are putting oil rigs off the coast of fuerteventura ????
This is a fantastic use of innovation and technology. I’ll confess to not knowing that this island was one of the Canaries but I bet, with such a small population, it’s a lot more unspoilt that some of the others and would be lovely to see.
I’ve been to El Hierro 4 times, and am going again in October.
Highly recommended.
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