Project implementation
To initiate the project, the e8 prepared a feasibility report and approved it in February 2005. That report identified a baseline system of three 660-kW wind turbines with a total capacity of 1,980 kW; the plan included a battery energy storage system coupled with the existing diesel generator plant.
The project team held a competitive bidding process for supply and construction of the wind project. The final configuration of wind turbines (manufacturer, kilowatt rating, quantity, blade diameter, and rpm) was selected based on market offerings at the time of the construction tender. Project leaders selected MADE, a manufacturer based in Spain, to supply the wind turbines and controls plus automation of the existing diesel generators, and Santos-CMI of Ecuador to handle project construction and be the logistics coordinator.
The selected system included three 800-kW variable-speed, synchronous wind turbines but no energy storage provisions. Three 650-kW diesel generators from the existing system were reconfigured to benefit from automated controls. A control system was designed to dispatch the wind turbines and diesel generators in hybrid mode, ensuring adequate power supply and quality to meet San Cristobal’s demand for electricity.
The 800-kW wind turbines (Figure 2) are MADE Model AE59 with 59-meter-diameter (194-foot) blades and a hub height of 51.5 meters (169 feet). The turbine blades were optimized for the wind characteristics of the Galapagos Islands (Figure 3).
2. Tight squeeze. Many special arrangements were required to move the heavy turbine parts through the streets of San Cristobal from the harbor to the hill top. Courtesy: American Electric Power
3. Lift off. Three long blades, three tons and 29.5 meters (97 feet) each, were assembled and lifted 51 meters (167 feet) to be placed at the top of each tower. Courtesy: American Electric Power
An electrical "collector" system gathers power from each wind turbine through underground cabling and transports it down the hillside to the wind park boundaries, where it interfaces with a transmission line. Leaving the wind park, the first 3 km of the line run underground to minimize the possibility of collision between the line and the endangered Galapagos petrels. The transmission line then converts into an aerial conductor for approximately 9 km before tying into the current distribution system at the diesel plant.
The construction crew built a new control building adjacent to the existing Elecgalapagos diesel plant control room area. The control building contains a control room, an archives room, and an office for the wind project’s operations management team.
Provisions in the contract signed with MADE included remote monitoring and troubleshooting of the wind turbine equipment via Internet by MADE staff in Spain. Although originally envisioned in the feasibility study, the energy storage provisions were not implemented due to maintenance and environmental considerations. Although the wind turbines frequently generate more energy at night than the island’s power company requires, excess energy cannot be captured and stored for later dispatch with the current system. Plug-in vehicles and energy storage may be considered for the project in the future, as battery and other technologies are improved and become more cost-effective.
In addition to the three wind turbines, the facility includes two 6-kW solar photovoltaic systems. To promote the efficient use of this solar energy source, the facility offers technical operations and maintenance (O&M) training and energy efficiency educational programs for residential customers.
The three wind turbines belong to one of the largest wind-diesel hybrid systems in the world and could supply more than 50% of the island’s electricity needs. The system, which took about five years to plan and a year to build, avoids approximately 2,800 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually from diesel generators. In addition, by displacing the use of diesel with wind, the project cuts the risk of diesel fuel spills in the environmentally fragile Ecuadorian archipelago.
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