Demonstration Project: Airborne Wind Turbine Commissioned on Mauritius
Port Louis, Mauritius / Hamburg, Germany - Sky Sails Power GmbH, which is specialised in airborne wind turbines, and Mauritius-based IBL Energy Holdings (IBL) have put a first project into operation as part of their joint venture.
High-altitude wind energy as a green power alternative for diesel generators
On the island of Mauritius, a 120 m2 flying kite has gone into operation that uses the wind at a height of several hundred metres to generate electricity. The plant is operated by Sky-Sails Power Indian Ocean, a joint venture of Sky-Sails Power and the Mauritian IBL Energy Holdings (IBL). After completion of the installation work and commissioning, the grid operator CEB granted permission to feed electricity into the island grid and confirmed the system's grid compliance. Based on the results of the first project, Sky-Sails intends to roll out the innovative technology in East Africa and the Indian Ocean from Mauritius together with IBL.
"We are proud to make our contribution to turn Mauritius more indepent from fossil energies. The objective of this project is to prove that airborne wind energy is an existing solution to provide green power to regions that highly depend on diesel generators up to now," says Sky Sails Power CEO Stephan Wrage.
The project is supported by the Mauritius Renewable Energy Agency (MARENA) as part of the national programme for new and innovative renewable energy technologies. Mauritius aims to have 60 percent renewable energy in its electricity mix by 2030.
How the Sky Sails Power System works
Sky Sails Power Systems use the energy of the high-altitude wind at heights of up to 400 metres. To generate energy, an automatically controlled flying kite rises, driven by the wind. As it gains altitude, it unwinds a tether from a winch on the ground. The resulting tractive force drives a generator in the winch, which produces electricity. Once the rope has reached its maximum length, the autopilot steers the kite into a neutral position with minimal drag and lift. The generator, which uses only a fraction of the previously generated energy for this, now acts as a motor and reels in the tether. The system repeats this process continuously and lets the kite fly at an altitude of 200 to 400 metres. The energy generated by the flying wind turbine can be fed into the power grid, stored in batteries or consumed directly.
About the company
Sky-Sails Power GmbH develops and markets airborne wind energy systems and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sky-Sails Group GmbH. Sky-Sails Group GmbH and its subsidiaries are based in Hamburg/Germany. The group employs around 100 people and operates a production facility in Seevetal, Lower Saxony, as well as a pilot plant for high-altitude wind energy in Klixbüll, Schleswig-Holstein.
The Mauritius-based listed group IBL is globally invested with more than 311 companies in nine sectors, including renewable energies. To this end, IBL Energy Holdings, a wholly owned subsidiary of the IBL Group, was established in 2020. The goal is to develop new business models based on innovative technologies in Mauritius, the Indian Ocean and Africa, where two thirds of the world's population live without access to electricity, and to become a leading company in the energy sector here.
Source: IWR Online, 10 Feb 2023
