Spanish wind power company Gamesa inaugurated a prototype offgrid power scheme for remote areas without grid access. The system bundles wind power, solar power, diesel-powered generation, and energy storage batteries, with an installed capacity of more than 2 megawatts (MW).

A prototype system near Zaragoza,Spain. Image source: GamesaThe prototype also includes control software developed by Gamesa to facilitate integrating the four technologies. The system combines a G52-850 kW wind turbine with 816 photovoltaic modules (245 kWp) and three 222-kW diesel generators (666 kW). The plan is to add a battery capable of storing 500 kWh / 500 kW, with the goal of generating enough power to meet the needs of 400 families (see video).

Gamesa Chairman Ignacio Martín says that "more than 1.2 billion people lack access to electricity.” Rural areas of India, Southeast Asia, Africa, islands such as Haiti, Indonesia and the Philippines, and other remote places could benefit from these offgrid approaches, he says.