Mace delivers Ascension Island wind farm for BBC World Service
Media
06/04/2010
Mace has helped to successfully deliver a wind farm on Ascension Island in the south Atlantic for the BBC World Service, providing civil engineering and project management services. The farm consisting of five turbines will provide up to 1650 kW of power for the island grid, which provides power for the BBC’s short wave transmitting station. The wind farm is planned to save up to £450,000 a year on oil and reduce CO2 emissions by 4,500 tonnes a year.
Located 1,000 miles from the nearest Continental land mass with no local materials or resources, the project was not without its challenges. The pace of the project was dictated by the delivery of all construction materials, which had to be transported to the island by ships, transferred by pontoon to the pier and then transported by road across the island. And these are no ordinary shiploads, the first ship contained all the civil plant and 1400 Te of aggregate and cement and the second included the turbines, masts and site cranage. Remoteness and scarcity of materials were not the only problems, even manpower resource was restricted to the number of available beds on the island at any one time.
Mace associate director Gordon Deuce said: “Following the successful completion of an oil tank farm renovation project on the Island we were delighted to be asked by BBC World Service to work with them again. The erection of the turbines ahead of programme was a major achievement for the project and we look forward to the project completion."
BBC World Service Senior Project Engineer Bob Hammond said “having Mace to assist in the project was of great benefit to us in helping manage the construction phase of the project.”
The success of the project shows Mace making further strides in the renewable energy sector with Mace also working with the New and Renewable Energy Centre on the marine test bed facility in Blyth, Northumberland.
Project: BBC Wind Farm Ascension Island
