A Feasibility Study for Wind/Hybrid Power System Applications for New England Islands

This paper presents the results of a feasibility study of potential wind energy developments on the islands of New England. The study included the compilation of an inventory of New England coastal islands, a categorization of the islands according to energy related criteria, and an overview of the current energy supply situation on those islands where energy demanding activities take place. This paper summarizes that study and presents two case studies of wind driven hybrid power systems on selected islands, together with an estimation of the technical performance and economic merits of these systems. 1.0 Introduction/ Background There are more than 3000 islands near the New England shoreline. About 150 of these islands support activities that require some sort of energy supply. These activities range in kind from unmanned automatic lighthouses to entire communities living year round on some of the islands. A significant number of islands support summer populations that use the islands for recreational, scientific and educational purposes. Since the type of activities varies from island to island, the energy systems that presently provide electricity and heating to the islands also vary. Of particular note is that some islands are connected to the mainland grid via underwater power transmission cables while other islands are isolated and generate their own electricity. The wind resource off the New England shore is quite favorable with wind speeds averaging from 7 to 9 m/s (at 50 m) from the Connecticut to Maine coasts. Therefore, this region could be appropriate for suitably sited wind power systems, especially wind/hybrid systems. A feasibility study, carried out at the Renewable Energy Research Laboratory (RERL) at the University of Massachusetts/ Amherst was carried out with the objective of investigating the feasibility of such systems. This work, summarized in this paper, was carried out under a U.S. Department of Energy contract and included the following six components: 1) A New England islands inventory and classification 2) A wind resource assessment for offshore New England 3) A summary of the current energy supply status of the islands 4) Power system options for the islands 5) Analytical modeling of potential hybrid power systems 6) Case studies of representative island systems.