(Thanks to Kim Elliot for this item.)

A key BBC World Service transmission site on Ascension Island in the South Atlantic has embraced on-site wind power with the assistance of sustainability consultancy AEA, which was commissioned to investigate renewable power options to replace ageing technology at the site.

The new hybrid wind/diesel power station is expected to save approximately £500,000 (US$803,000) a year on the diesel fuel that previously had to be shipped to the island, and reduce the frequency of tanker-supplied diesel fuel deliveries to 18 monthly intervals.

The location and nature of Ascension Island made the project particularly challenging – the island is volcanic and has no deepwater port.

However, since the turbines have been in operation they have generated in the region of 205 MWh of electricity a month – offsetting approximately 58,000 litres of diesel.

(Source: Power-Gen Worldwide Press Release)