ONE DOWN AND SEVEN TO GO FOR WINDPOWER PROJECT IN THE SEYCHELLES
Information from Mahe confirms that the first of overall 8 windpower turbines, which are assembled in two locations on the main island of the Seychelles as a pilot project to tap into renewable energy sources, has now been assembled in full on the Ile du Port. This will permit the second unit to be assembled on site, due to start next week. The final ‘tower’ is due for completion by early December to be followed by trial runs before the formal commissioning by President James Alix Michel.
Under ideal conditions the 8 units are expected to generate about 6 MW of power which will be fed into the national grid through a special electricity substation, which according to the same source is already complete and ready to go.
The Seychelles is rolling out a green energy plan to increase the percentage of using renewable energy sources through promoting the increased use of solar power to generate hot water and provide electricity on a domestic level while introducing wind power to progressively increase electricity supply through green technologies.
While conversing through email the source also rubbished recent reports of ‘green washing’, insisting that the Seychelles’ credentials of going green and staying green are a result of measuring performance through internationally recognized mechanisms and parameters, pointing at the fact that over 50 percent of the country’s territory is now formally protected by law. ‘You have been to our islands many times and seen what efforts are going into our terrestrial and marine national parks. You met the key individuals from the SeychellesIsland Foundation, Nature Seychelles, SeychellesNational Parks and other NGO’s working in the conservation field. You interviewed them and asked questions and were able to form your own conclusions. If the Seychelles government were involved in what some call green washing, you would have found that out for sure and said so. We have nothing to hide as far as our records and our commitment to conservation is concerned, we are open about it, we know about the challenges and we are constantly seeking to learn and improve. Seychelles as a tourism destination depends on intact beaches, nature, marine life. Suggestions of tampering with the very foundation of our tourism industry is simply ludicrous if not outright malicious and a mere invention by people with their own agenda’ said the source. Seychelles, truly Another World.
