Case Study: Necker Island, British Virgin Islands — Among the Most Energy Efficient Islands in the World
Overview
In 1978, Sir Richard Branson purchased Necker Island, a beautiful getaway in the British Virgin Islands. What began with a dream of creating an environment where people could talk and relax soon became an unparalleled luxury retreat. Now, Branson has a new dream: to transform Necker Island into one of the most energy efficient islands in the world.
Branson wanted to build a unique kind of power system for Necker Island shaped to match local renewable energy sources. He partnered with NRG Renew to take on this challenge, developing a microgrid system that allows the island to be energy efficient and almost completely self-sustaining. Upon completion, renewable resources will be responsible for offsetting 75 percent of the island’s total consumption. No longer will Necker Island be reliant on importing diesel fuel as its main power source.
The microgrid on Necker Island is a distributed power system that can operate independently or hand-in-hand with a larger electrical grid. It will supply high-quality, reliable power by an integrated array of solar, wind, and energy storage technologies.
The Necker Island microgrid will serve as a flagship representation of the power of innovation, the promise of microgrids, and the central role of renewable energy in tackling the Caribbean Basin’s energy challenges.
Project Quick Facts:
- Location: Necker Island, BVI.
- Capacity: 1.75 MW
- Type: Microgrid (Solar, Wind and Battery)
- 900 kW wind power
- 350 kW DC solar power
- 500 kWh battery capacity
- Power Purchaser: Necker Island
- Estimated Completion: 2016
- Project Partner: Virgin Limited Edition
About NRG Renew
A Fortune 250 company, NRG supports clean energy resources and technologies that are critical to our transition to a sustainable, low carbon society and clean future. Its diverse power generating facilities have a capacity of about 53,000 megawatts, capable of supporting almost 42 million homes, and its retail electricity and thermal energy divisions serve nearly 3 million residential, business, privately-funded electric vehicle charging infrastructure and continue to create new, clean energy solutions for customers.
NRG Renew, a subsidiary of NRG Energy. Inc., is one of the largest renewable energy companies in the United States, with more than 150 renewable energy projects totaling approximately 4,500 gross megawatts (MWac) of solar and wind capacity in operation throughout North America, U.S. territories and the Caribbean.
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