A video featuring the off grid solar project on the ABC network can be found here as well as an accompanying article published by ABC news.
A tropical island paradise off Queensland’s Capricorn Coast is being completely powered by renewable energy, making it one of the first carbon neutral islands in the Great Barrier Marine Park.
North Keppel (Konomie) Island, is home to a unique environmental education centre run by the Queensland government. The centre is eleven kilometres off Yeppoon on the Capricorn Coast. It is the only Environmental Education Centre situated in a national park and is surrounded by the stunning seascapes of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. There are no other developments on the island which sits off the scenic Capricornia Coast. About 2,500 students stay on the island for school camp each year where they learn about climate change, First Nations culture and sustainable living.
As their commitment to sustainability and reducing their carbon footprint, Queensland Government commissioned Solar Hybrids to install and integrate a completely off grid power system. Some key challenges to the project were integrating old PV modules and an old wind turbine to work with the newer technologies; and managing logistics on an site only accessible by boat. The ground mount structure also required a bespoke design specific to the site to ensure minimal disturbances to the ground whilst considering the needs of traditional owners.
To achieve the Qld Government Education Centres commitment to sustainability and to meet the energy needs of the site the new off grid power system was designed to provide close to 100kW’s of power and 450kWh’s of energy. The off grid solar system allows the Education Centre to continue to deliver an authentic experience to their visitors and students in a highly sustainable manner. Solar Hybrids was the preferred installer due to their technical capabilities in the off grid power space, ensuring the various challenges were met.
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