Renewable Energy DevelopmentIntegration of Wind Energy into the Electrification Networks in Outer Islands in Maldives

All outer islands in the Maldives are electrified using diesel-based power plants. Cost of imported fuel and its transportation to outer islands accounts for a significant component of the local electricity tariff. Asian Development Bank (ADB), which is studying the overall development of the outer island electrification systems in the Maldives, contracted RMA to study the feasibility of integrating wind generators into island electricity networks.

RMA expert visited some of the potential islands along with the ADB Team and had extensive discussions with the local power system operators on this subject. Main difficulty experienced by RMA in this study is the lack of good quality wind data for assessment of the wind energy potential in islands. RMA accessed regional wind data and compared them with locally available data to make preliminary estimates of the wind power plant performance in the island wind climate. Subsequently, RMA assisted ADB in the preparation of a Project Brief for submission to the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) seeking grant funding for a wind and solar-based pilot project in the Maldives