Ross Island wind farm
The world’s southernmost wind farm is the result of a partnership between Meridian and Antarctica New Zealand.
Located on Ross Island’s Crater Hill, the three wind turbines supply renewable energy for New Zealand’s Scott Base and the American base at McMurdo Station.
The wind farm was built by Meridian and is operated by Antarctica New Zealand. Construction began in 2008 and the Ross Island wind farm became fully operational in 2009.
Why build a wind farm here?
The wind farm reduces the carbon footprint of the Antarctic operations, as well as the environmental risks associated with transporting diesel fuel.
The wind farm has had a big impact. The base’s annual fuel consumption has been cut by approximately 463,000 litres, and greenhouse gas production from both bases has been reduced by 1,242 tonnes of carbon dioxide.
The Crater Hill site was selected because it has a high average annual wind speed of 7.9 metres per second, or 28.4 kilometres per hour, at a hight of 39 metres (the height of the wind turbine’s hub). It’s also one of the few ice-free areas on Ross Island.
Building Ross Island
The conditions for developing and building this wind farm were unique and challenging. We could only work on the site in the summer months when there was daylight and conditions were slightly warmer than in the rest of the year. The project needed world-leading skills and innovative technical solutions – and that’s where Meridian’s expertise came in.
Our other wind farms
It gets pretty blustery in New Zealand – which is good news for us wind farmers. We have five wind farms dotted across the country, as well as our solidary Brooklyn wind turbine in Wellington.
Education resources
We reckon that by teaching Kiwi kids how we make clean energy, they’ll continue the mahi to keep Papatūānuku in good shape for our future. That’s why we’ve come up with some downloadable education resources that are aligned with the New Zealand school curriculum and have been designed and reviewed by New Zealand teachers.