The E8 Network of Expertise for the Global Environment

Displacing diesel-powered generation by wind in the Galapagos

Ecuador

e8 San Cristobal Wind Project

e8 San Cristobal wind park

The San Cristobal Wind Project DVD - NEW

Beginning in the 1990s, there was increasing concern that the risk of fuel spills threatened the fragile environment of the Galapagos Islands, where diesel fuel is used to power generators that produce electricity needed by its residents. The Government of Ecuador took note of these concerns and initiated exploration of environmentally friendly power generation. The government sought help from the United Nations through the UN Development Programme (UNDP).

Fears over fuel spills unfortunately proved to be true in January 2001 when the oil tanker Jessica ran aground at the harbor of San Cristóbal, releasing significant amounts of oil.

The e8 responded to the challenge by agreeing to develop and implement a 2.4 MW wind project on the island of San Cristóbal. Three wind turbines, each generating 800 kW, provide approximately half of the island’s annual electricity needs. Diesel-powered generation on the island is thus displaced by approximately 50%, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 2,800 tonnes a year, limiting the risk of equally devastating diesel-fuel tanker spills in the future and contributing to the protection of a world heritage site and the biodiversity of one of the richest ecosystems in the world.

The e8 member companies have provided management and technical expertise on a pro bono basis to support the development and management of the wind project. The e8 has provided grants totalling USD 5.6 million. The United Nations Foundation provided a USD 1 million matching grant administered through UNDP. The balance of funding has been provided by in-country resources, including a campaign under which corporations and individuals in Ecuador could direct income tax payments to the project.

The e8 San Cristobal Wind Project has been implemented in close collaboration with the Ecuadorian Ministry of Energy and Mines, Elecgalapagos S.A. (the local electricity utility), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). It has benefited from the support of the United Nations Foundation and falls under UNDP’s Renewable Energy Program, envisaged to introduce renewables in the four inhabited Islands of the Galapagos Archipelago.

The San Cristobal Wind Project will:

Reduce the risks of oil spills associated with transportation and delivery of fuel;
Reduce fossil-fuel emissions and greenhouse gases on a local and global scale;
Decrease the Galapagos’ dependence on the supply of diesel fuel for the generation of electricity in the archipelago;
Be an example of multilateral collaboration for Climate Change mitigation;
Contribute to the protection of bio-diversity;
Provide valuable experience for the global promotion of small-scale, renewable energy power generation and distribution systems;
Increase the local population’s access to non-conventional, clean, energy; and
Develop public awareness of effective demand-side management and energy conservation practices.

After the approval of the project’s feasibility studies and culmination of permitting activities in 2005 followed by two years of equipment manufacturing and site construction, the e8 experts, in collaboration with their local partners finalized the installation of the wind turbines and implementation of the hybridsystem. The grid-connected system has been in operation on the Island of San Cristobal,
Galapagos, since October 2007.

The e8 San Cristobal Wind Project has been registered under the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). The project will receive Certified Emission Reduction (CER) credits from the effective CO2 emissions reductions achieved by the substitution of diesel-powered generation.

Click here for the e8 San Cristobal Wind Project publication.

President Rafael Correa of Ecuador formally launched, on February 18, 2008, in San Cristobal, Galapagos, a national programme aimed at ridding the Galapagos Archipelago of fossil fuels by 2015, and acknowledged the e8 San Cristobal Wind Project as a first step towards such an initiative.

Click here for a summary of the international media coverage following the launch of the e8 San Cristobal Project in February and March 2008.

In line with the e8’s core mission of promoting sustainable energy development, completed e8 projects undergo a two-year monitoring phase in which the e8 observes all their operations to ensure their well-functioning and sustainability in the long run.

In order to ensure adequate support during the first years of operation, a maintenance engineer from the wind turbine-generator manufacturer MADE - Spain was assigned on-site for a two-year period. Over the monitoring period between October 2007 and December 2009, the wind-turbine generators (WTG) operated with a high availability (over 94%). Recorded wind speed averaged close to 5.5 m/s, a figure that, albeit lower than had been previously forecasted,

ensured a high and constant generation of electricity from the wind park.

As of December 2009, the recorded average wind generation penetration reached 34.5% of the island’s total power generation, which was lower than the anticipated 50%. This was the result of the lower than average wind at the site and a 6.5% increase in the island’s total energy demand. In spite of this, the wind park led to the reduction of 5,300 tons of CO₂ emissions over the whole monitoring period and, with the project’s model being used as a blueprint for the replication of similar wind-based power projects in other islands, the e8 expects the project to continue paving the way for the fossil fuel-free electrification of the Galapagos Archipelago.

As part of the wind project, local expertise from the Galapagos National Park was contracted to implement a programme for the protection and recovery of the endangered Galapagos Petrel bird species. The programme included protection of bird nests and regular monitoring of bird mortality caused by the wind turbines. Records show that the wind park operation has had no direct impact on the Petrels’ mortality.

The e8 will be participating in the managing of the wind park operation for a total of 8 years, period after which it will be turned over to the local utility Elecgalápagos S.A.. As part of its commitments, e8 is providing training and human capacity building to the Elecgalápagos S.A. staff to ensure operators and maintenance crews will be able to take full control of the operation afterwards.

A Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) is in force between EOLICSA and Elecgalápagos S.A. During the operation period October 2007 – December 2009, a total amount of 6,677 MWh has been delivered from the wind project to the local utility, for an accumulated invoice value of US$ 856,029: it has been totally paid by the buyer. The incomes from PPA are adequate to cover the Project administration, operation and maintenance costs.

Status: Completed in 2007

e8 Priorities

Major global environmental and social issues that affect the electric utility industry are considered to be the top priorities of the e8.

The issues of sustainable development, climate change, social trust, and internationalisation are the focus of the e8's actions.