Maldives wind farm to supply 40 per cent of island nation's power

A $200m (£123m), 75MW wind farm planned for the Maldives is to provide 40 per cent of the island nation's electricity needs, bringing it closer to its goal of being carbon neutral by 2020.

Announced yesterday, the 30-turbine project will be financed, built and operated by Falcon Energy under a 20-year contract with Maldivian government-owned power monopoly State Electric Co.

The government did not provide further details about the deal, saying only that the company has commissioned onshore and offshore wind farms totaling 1.5GW over the past 10 years in Spain, Ireland, the UK, Portugal and Canada.

The wind farm, which is expected to be operational within the next 20 months, will supply the capital city of Malé with all its electricity needs, in addition to the Malé International Airport and 24 nearby resorts, according to the government.

Surplus power will be used to run an energy-intensive desalination plant that will produce bottled water from the sea. On calm days, a liquefied natural gas plant with an installed capacity of 50MW will supply backup electricity.

GE Energy will supply wind turbines to the project after conducting a year-long feasibility study. The government said the turbines will be erected at Gaafaru island, 65km north of Malé, and be connected to the capital's electricity grid via underwater cables.

The wind farm is expected to reduce the nation's heavy dependence on imported diesel fuel and cut carbon emissions by up to 25 per cent.

"We are doing this because we have an environmental conscience and it is economical to do so," said Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed.

In March, Nasheed announced plans to make the Indian Ocean nation carbon neutral by 2020 through the adoption of renewable energy sources such as solar and wind power.

Nasheed told reporters yesterday that "with the manner things are proceeding now, my feeling is that we will be able to achieve these goals much, much earlier."

The Maldives has emerged as an increasingly influential player in international climate change negotiations following stark warnings that it could be one of the first countries to be completely wiped out by global warming. The archipelago, home to 385,000 citizens, is among the world's lowest-lying nations, putting it in danger of being completely submerged from rising sea levels. A UN study has predicted that a sea level rise of up to 58cm could fully immerse many of the Maldives' 1,192 small coral islands by 2100.

The country's government has been vocal in demanding that a robust deal be agreed at the forthcoming climate change talks in Copenhagen and last month the cabinet staged an underwater meeting to highlight the nation's plight.