Winds at South Point are always high due to the temperature
inversion layer preventing northeast winds from going over the island. Instead these winds are directed around the north and southern points of the island. If you take a look at the map below it shows different wind conditions throughout the big island. Blue is the highest wind velocity, and located right in the vertical blue line down near southpoint is the Kamaoa Wind Farm. The Kamaoa Wind Energy Partners was on-line in 1987, maintaining and operating 37 250kW Mitsubishi wind turbines. After years of storms and minimal upgrades these turbines started to degrade and were eventually sold to Apollo Energy Corporation in 1994. With a lot of restoration needed to get the turbines going again, Apollo scraped hopeless turbines in order to keep the others going. By 2006 their efforts were minimal and Apollo decided to shut the plant down completely in 2008. Kamaoa’s farm is now owned by Tawhiri Power LLC who owns but doesn’t harness the wind at this specific location. Tawhiri however purchased land just down the coast and acquired permits to have 14 turbines in place. Despite the abandoned Kamaoa site, Apollo mentioned that if the old turbines were retrofitted with new equipment and sufficient funds were spent to continue permitting they would re-establish this site. However you look at their situation the place looks like it’s out of a nuclear holocaust film because of all the abandoned structures popping out of a vast dry savanna region. |
South Point Wind Potential |
Sources
Juvik, Sonia P. and, James O. Juvik1998. Atlas of Hawai‘i.
Hilo, HI: University of Hawai‘i Press
Associated Press. 2007. “Big Isle wind farm generates power, but bill’s about the same.” Associated Press, July 18th. Retrieved November 28th, 2011.
(http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2007/Jul/18/ln/FP707180395.html)
Kaya, Maurice. April 2002. “History of Wind Energy Projects in Hawaii.” Retrieved November 28th,2011 (http://hawaii.gov/dbedt/ert/wwg/history.html)
Hilo, HI: University of Hawai‘i Press
Associated Press. 2007. “Big Isle wind farm generates power, but bill’s about the same.” Associated Press, July 18th. Retrieved November 28th, 2011.
(http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2007/Jul/18/ln/FP707180395.html)
Kaya, Maurice. April 2002. “History of Wind Energy Projects in Hawaii.” Retrieved November 28th,2011 (http://hawaii.gov/dbedt/ert/wwg/history.html)