The Portuguese isle of Porto Santo has joined a growing list of Atlantic “smart islands” using cleantech to cut fossil fuel use.
Cutting-edge grid innovation is coming to a small Portuguese island in the Atlantic.
French carmaker Groupe Renault said last month that it would collaborate with island authorities and grid operator Empresa de Electricidade da Madeira (EEM) on a project called Sustainable Porto Santo/Smart Fossil Free Island, which will include vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology. The project grapples with the challenges of increasing variable renewables on a small island grid.
In the first phase, costing €9 million ($11 million), the island will install 40 charging points for 14 Renault Zoe electric cars and six Kangoo electric vans.
At the end of this year, these vehicles will start acting in V2G mode to help the grid cope with demand peaks.
Finally, Renault will install energy storage, based on second-life EV batteries, so the renewable energy capacity on the island can be increased without curtailment.
The carmaker is working with a U.K. company called Powervault on its second-life battery technology, although “at this stage the [Porto Santo] project with Renault has not been discussed,” said Powervault’s business development associate Tom Ross.
Read more: GreenTechMedia