A small island in the South Pacific has been converted to have solar power instead of diesel power generators.
The island is named Ta’u, and it is part of the American Samoa. It used to depend entirely on imported diesel for its power grid, which often suffered from blackouts and shortages.
After an investment made by the American Samoa Economic Development Authority, along with the EPA and the Department of Interior, it can run entirely on solar power.
The small island has panels from SolarCity, along with Tesla PowerPacks to store the energy that is collected by the said panels. The micro-grid develops 1.4 megawatts, and its storage abilities can keep the island supplied with electric power for up to three days without sunlight.
Fortunately for them, those three days rarely come in sequence, so the approximately 600 residents should not experience blackouts in the future.
The installation has 60 Tesla Powerpack units (the industrial-grade version of the Powerwall), along with 5.328 solar panels. Those are a lot of solar panels, and some people have noticed that they are placed inside a forest.
It is unclear at this time if any trees have been cut down to fit those solar panels, as some people claim that has happened. It is hard to tell from photos and an artistic video, but we might argue that turning an entire island to solar power would outweigh cutting a few of its trees.
Regardless, the Hawaiian island of Kauai is reportedly the next in line to receive a solar conversion, so we hope to learn more about this procedure when it happens.
Tesla and SolarCity have not disclosed just how much of the island’s power needs are supplied by their micro-grid, but we do know that the systems fitted to the Ta’u Island can entirely handle its resident’s necessities.
Until this network, the island relied on diesel generators, which burned 300 gallons (1.135 liters) of imported fuel every day. Just one of those generators consumed 109.500 gallons (414.500) of diesel every year, and the island had several units.
Sebastian's love for cars began at a young age. Little did he know that a career would emerge from this passion (and that it would not, sadly, involve being a professional racecar driver). In over fourteen years, he got behind the wheel of several hundred vehicles and in the offices of the most important car publications in his homeland. Full profile
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