Small Wind and Off-Grid Systems

Sean Whittaker
Climate Business Group International Finance Corporation (IFC) February 2012

Very Small Small Wind Turbines

Rated Capacity:
300 Watts to 1 kilowatt (kW)

Typical Applications:
Battery charging (often used with solar) Can supply < 5% of house demand

Costs:
Installed cost = $US800 for a 400 W unit Cost of energy = 40 to 50 cents / kWh

Major manufacturers:
Southwest Windpower, Proven, Cyclone

Air X - 400 Watt

Medium-sized Small Wind Turbines

Rated Capacity:
1 kW 10 kW

Typical Applications:
On-grid residential, farms Can supply up to 50% of house needs

Costs:
Installed cost = $US 60,000 for a 10 kW unit Cost of energy = ~ 20 to 30 cents/kWh

Major manufacturers:
Bergey Windpower, Southwest, African Wind Power, Endurance Bergey 10 kW

Large Small Wind Turbines

Rated capacity:
20 kW to 300 kW

Typical applications:
Farms, schools, remote communities Can service several houses

Costs:
Installed cost = $US180,000 for a 60 kW unit Cost of energy = ~ 14 to 25 cents/kWh

Major manufacturers:
Seaforth, Northern Power, Vergnet, Wind Energy Solutions, Enercon, Endurance

Seaforth 60 kW

History and some lessons learned

Small wind has a mixed record
There is certainly a lot of good but a lot of bad too and even some ugly!

Reason # 1 Poor turbine performance

There has been no standard certification process to test the performance and durability of small wind turbines As a result, it is ripe for new inventions with outrageous performance and cost claims buyer beware! Nothing tells you more about a turbine than third-party certifications and commercial track record

What is wrong with this picture? (Part 1)

 and some more lessons

Reason # 2: Poor turbine placement
Putting a wind turbine in the wrong place is like putting a solar panel in the shade turbine needs steady, non-turbulent winds Rule of thumb: turbine hub should be 5 to 10 meters above the nearest obstruction within 100 meters If you double the wind speed you increase the energy by a factor of eight - so it pays to get your wind turbine into the best possible wind

What is wrong with this picture? (Part 2)

Two simple rules for a good installation

Start with a proven, tested turbine
For smaller wind turbines (under ~65 kW) new certification standards such as SWCC ensuring that turbines perform as advertised For larger turbines, look for a proven track record

and put it in the right place!

Use available tools to discover resource: e.g. HOMER, RETScreen, First Look Put your turbine on a tall tower For systems over 10 kW, consider installing an anemometer

Case # 1 Small Wind for Telecoms

How to reduce fuel use at a telecom base station?
Cost of diesel at off-grid BTS sites is $US20 to $50,000 per year Sites often in high, windy places Huge market for green power at these sites (Green Power for Mobiles)

Solution:
Equipment: 7.5 kW Wind Turbine, 2 kW Solar, ~ 60 kWh Battery Bank, 15 kW Diesel, Controls, & Monitoring Installed cost: $110,000 80% Annual Fuel Savings OPEX Savings: ~ $20-40,000/year

Case # 2 Stable Power for Coral Bay

How to stabilize power supply for a remote island?
Coral Bay, Australia powered by diesel generators High cost of power and frequent power outages

Solution:
Three Vergnet 275 kW turbines, 320 kW diesel and a 500 kW flywheel storage system Reduces diesel fuel use by 500,000 litres per year On average, turbines deliver 60% of communitys power (often reaching 100%)

Case Study # 3 Wind-Diesel for Off-Grid Mining

How to reduce costs at a diamond mine in northern Canada?
Area only accessible by ice road two to four months per year Mines electricity exclusively from diesel generating sets (very $$$$) Rio Tinto measured wind for three years and decided to invest

Solution:
Worlds first large winddiesel system for a mine Four 2.3 MW turbines will provide 10% of site power Will displace 4 million litres of diesel per year Innovative technology works down to -40 deg. C Operational December 2012

Summary: Small Wind and Off-Grid

For residential and small applications (on-grid):
Turbines under 10 kW capacity are attractive Pick a turbine that has been certified or has a long track record Use the tools available to pick the right site

For community and commercial applications (on & off-grid):

Turbines of 10 KW and greater are attractive, particularly with diesel Make sure to pick a turbine with a good performance and servicing track record

For off-grid industrial applications:

Large wind-diesel (100 kW to 10 MW) can be very cost-effective Wind-diesel hybrids have come a long way they can provide steady, reliable power at a very competitive price, particularly when compared to diesel