MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Falklands’ farms helped with wool prices rapidly moving to wind energy
Electricity generated from wind is spreading across the Falkland Islands with two large farms Goose Green and Fitzroy preparing to be the next to have turbines, inverters and batteries installed. Read full article
Comments
Disclaimer & comment rulesIts the way forward. Make money from the oil but invest it in renewable energy. Wind and suitable sites for turbines seem more than ample in the FI.
Jul 06th, 2012 - 04:36 pm - Link - Report abuse 0That's Argentine wind.... well if it's hot air blowing from hundreds of miles to the west.
Jul 06th, 2012 - 04:39 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Be sensible. Put the things on all the “other” islands. And paint them black. And sharpen the edges. Get the idea?
Jul 06th, 2012 - 05:08 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Shhhh! Conquerer! They are nuclear wind turbines, it is all a devious plot!
Jul 06th, 2012 - 10:48 pm - Link - Report abuse 0@3 Nice one. Pity WTs were not up in 82, west of...............
Jul 06th, 2012 - 11:22 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Actually thanks to the Americans are 51 technology, these are really mind altering beam arrays, that transmit Zetamoron particles towards Argentina. You will see, this time next year, their attitude towards the Islands will totally change.
Jul 07th, 2012 - 12:01 am - Link - Report abuse 0Wind turbines seem like a good idea as part of a suite of energy production and conservation initiatives.
Jul 07th, 2012 - 12:26 am - Link - Report abuse 0FIG Renewable Energy website: http://www.falklands.gov.fk/Renewable_Energy.html
Has the Falkland Islands delivered the world's first wind-powered smart grid?:
http://www.falklands.gov.fk/Renewable_Energy.html
I know this is completely off subject, but can anyone tell me what flag RMS Darwin flew? Red duster, FI flag or other?
Jul 07th, 2012 - 07:27 pm - Link - Report abuse 08 ynsere: Magnifying small internet image of RMS Darwin, appears to be Red Ensign on stern jackstaff and maybe FI flag from mainmast:
Jul 08th, 2012 - 01:40 am - Link - Report abuse 0http://www.southamericanpictures.com/archive/Falkland%20Is/falklands111.htm
@7 JohnN
Jul 08th, 2012 - 07:41 am - Link - Report abuse 0Great link, didn't realise the FI was that windy, also as the article points out, electric cars in the FI are the future, using their batteries to help store the islands electricity, very clever.
The FI is maybe the best place in the world for trialling this system.
The Falklands should keep being innovators-I remember when I lived there they reciprocated a ban on CFCs as occurred in the UK.
Jul 08th, 2012 - 11:53 am - Link - Report abuse 0Early hovercraft trials there and an European Space Agency tracking station used to be there-and that was when the UK were SHAMEFULLY trying to sell the Islands out. One good thing to come from 82-no turning back by UK from their responsibilities. As a result of that security just look how far the Islands have progressed as a country since-it is almost amusing to compare it with how slowly Argentina have progressed (or regressed) in the same time. This is what annoys the Argentines-the fact that the Islands are progressing to more and more autonomy whilst they winge instead of sorting their own country out.
I wonder if being where they are (mirror image of UK in the north) would be detrimental to them having some sort of space research base there (ie for that hyrogen hypersonic airliner/ space aircraftbased on HOTOL that Brits are developing?
It never stopped blowing for the 4 months i was there
Jul 08th, 2012 - 12:06 pm - Link - Report abuse 0JohnN @ 9 - Many thanks. I wonder whether any former crew-members of RMS Darwin still live in the Falklands? Particularly Jimmy, the purser/steward?
Jul 08th, 2012 - 02:28 pm - Link - Report abuse 0I have to say that we have been conned into thinking that wind turbines are the future. I can tell you all quite categorically that after much research they are NOT. there is this misconception that they will work in any condition however when its to windy they have to be shut down and when ice forms on those blades again they have to shut down. And just when we all need them the most in the winter months because of what I have said they wont be working .
Jul 08th, 2012 - 04:46 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Far better to sell the dam things to Argentina nothing works properly there anyway so they wont know any different.
14 David Cameron:
Jul 08th, 2012 - 07:19 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Indeed, wind power has been over-sold a lot around the world. Performance under high winds and icing conditions are critical in wind turbine development.
Devil is in the site-specific details, and I think Falklands wind power as an isolated site with few options (maybe like parts of northern Scotland), might be part of the reason for the increased adoption of wind power.
Totally replacing Falklands diesel generators might be not only be unrealistic but unwise, given that diesel generators are also improving, but Falklands wind development as fuel-diversifier could be beneficial so less dependence on the diesel generators.
According to Bergey WindPower, micro-grid camp settlements like Pebble Island now have more than 20 years experience dealing with wind turbine issues (ie, inverter and wiring problems) and seems to be working them through, and since funding help from EU, turbine chosen had to be European too (Scottish) .
Bergey Wind Power: “Pebble Island, Falkland Islands”:
http://www.bergey.com/pebble-island-falkland-islands
Short 2011 video of Falkland wind turbines interesting because of commentary, and also showing peat-gathering still going on for home stove:
http://www.bergey.com/pebble-island-falkland-islands
@15 JohnN
Jul 08th, 2012 - 07:50 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Just out of interest, have you ever been to the FI?
16 Steve-32-uk : Not yet been to Falklands so I envy my cousin who just returned to Toronto from visit to Stanley.
Jul 08th, 2012 - 10:15 pm - Link - Report abuse 0@15 JohnN
Jul 09th, 2012 - 10:38 am - Link - Report abuse 0The old style wind turbines were no good in high winds. They had fixed blades and had to be shut down or lowered or the the wind would shred the blades. This happened I think with the first set at Pebble, about 20 years ago. Ours is newer and has a electromagnetic brake.
Ref blades icing up the winter temperatures here rarely drop below -5C so icing up is not an issue, or at least not with ours or any that I've heard of. Also could be due to the fact that the air is rarely still enough to allow ice to form. However the sea was frozen to 3 or 4 metres from the shore a few days ago.
I doubt anyone here will get rid of diesel generators and rely wholly on wind power. Wind is an excellent energy source but not stand alone.
FOR info - or twimc as think says! Wind power in the falkands is VERY effective - it provides now up to 38% of the Stanley electrical grid!
Jul 09th, 2012 - 08:48 pm - Link - Report abuse 0It has reduced the price of electricty here by approx £0.09 per unit below what it would be if we were still on diesel alone. - as well as recouping capital costs within 8yrs.
Simply becaue we have a windy climate - UK does not - apart from maybe NW Scotland and Islands. That is why it does not work commercially economically there.- just green, but costly.
Here it is green - and good financial returns!
Nobody here is atalking about 100% wind! The battery costs would be silly! It is an economic money saving carbon fuel displacement- simple as that.
Any excess electricity could be sold back to argentina, but then again they would claim that the falklands were squandering the natural resources and that it was argentine wind.. as set down in the papul bull of 300 b.c.
Jul 14th, 2012 - 03:03 pm - Link - Report abuse 0@20
Jul 14th, 2012 - 05:43 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Musky-Lol!
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