Indiana-based WindStream Technologies is set to erect the worlds largest wind-solar hybrid installation in Kinston, Jamaica.
The 80 kW installation consists of 50 WindStream SolarMill units that will generate more than 106,000 kilowatt hours of renewable energy annually, (25 kW of wind and 55 kW of solar), and an expected return on investment of less than four years for Kingston law firm Myers, Fletcher & Gordon (MFG), which commissioned the project.
The SolarMill is a new distributed energy technology consisting of Vertical Axis Wind Turbines (VAWT), solar panels and proprietary "smart" electronics. The energy generated by each SolarMill can be used off grid with a storage system or inverted for use in grid-tied applications, according to WindStream.
Occupying the roof space about the size of a solar panel, each SolarMill provides the highest energy density currently available in the renewable market, the company added.
WindStream said its expects the energy cost savings to exceed $2 million over the course of the installations projected 25-year life span.
"We have been at the forefront of the Jamaican legal landscape for 70 years and we are pleased to be continuing that trend by leading in Jamaican sustainability and renewable energy," said Donovan Cunningham, MFGs chief operating officer. "This was a bold undertaking and we expect to reap rich rewards through our partnership with WindStream."
The MFG SolarMill installation is a part of a larger effort by Jamaica Public Service (JPS) to provide greater access to renewable energy solutions in a country where the cost of energy is over three times the U.S. average. JPS and WindStream also collaborated with Eaton Houghton of energy services company Caribbean ESCO, who served as lead energy efficiency auditor for the project.
"We are proud to be working with JPS, which is distributing our products within Jamaica and throughout the Caribbean," said WindStream COO Travis Campbell. "This SolarMill installation is an excellent model for other businesses to follow. If you are interested in energy efficiency and saving money, SolarMills are a simple, cost-effective solution."
WindStream recently opened an office in Hyderabad, India, and has also secured distribution agreements in Turkey, Ghana, Liberia, New Zealand and Tanzania.
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