Antarctic station cuts ribbon on world's southernmost wind farm

It may already be on the front line of climate change, but the frozen continent of Antarctica is increasingly on the front line of efforts to curb carbon emissions as well.

The world's most southerly wind farm was formally opened over the weekend with the installation of three wind turbines, which together are expected to supply about 11 per cent of the power to New Zealand's Scott Base and the American McMurdo Station, cutting diesel use at the Antarctic stations by about 463,000 litres per year.

Remarkably, the development is not the first Antarctic wind farm. Australia’s Mawson scientific research station already runs two turbines, and it is hoped that if successful, the latest project could prove the first in a series of renewable energy initiatives designed to reduce the continent's reliance on fossil fuel.

There are believed to be enough potentially suitable sites around the bases to generate up to 50 per cent of their total energy requirements and if the wind farm proves a success, Meridian Energy, the New Zealand-based utility that built and runs the turbines, is also considering installing a solar power generation system.

Scott Bennett, project manager at Meridian Energy, told Reuters: "The philosophy is to get this one up and running, get it operating for a year and [see if it can] show us the way forward."

The construction of the 37-metre high, three-turbine wind farm cost $7.4m (£4.5m) and took two years. This was partly because work can only take place between November and February in an environment where the temperature can drop as low as -57°C.

Another challenge was the fact that the region only receives one supply ship per year. As a result, the initiative had to be planned meticulously to ensure that all the required components were packed into a limited space on the vessel. "Everything had to be planned right down to the last nut and bolt," said Bennett.

The project was funded mainly by the New Zealand government, and is likely to provide data that should help improve the design of wind turbines for coping with harsh conditions.