Cape Le Grand National Park SAPS
Customer
Horizon Power
Project Date: 2019
Solution
Solution
Design and deploy a customised Stand-alone Power System (SAPS) combining solar photovoltaic panels, advanced battery storage technology and back-up generation to deliver 37 kilowatt hours of power per day for:
-Solution Two rangers’ houses
– Workshops
– Park office.
Specifications: R-Series SAPS
8.16 kW of solar panels
28.8 kWh of battery storage
20 kVA of back-up diesel generation
Location
Southern coast of Western Australia, east of Esperance
Situation
Horizon Power, Western Australia’s regional and remote power company sustained permanent damage to 320 power poles and hundreds of kilometres of wires following the 2015 Esperance bushfires, interrupting the supply of power to its customers, including Cape Le Grand National Park.
The Horizon Power Round 3 roll out marks Australia’s largest single installation of SPS units with more than 180 installed, replacing around 762km of overhead powerlines, improving land amenities for farmers and reducing the risk of bushfires.
Design Considerations
- Providing safe reliable power that met or exceeded the utility’s obligations under its charter
- Analysing the load profile, demands and usage requirements of multiple sites to inform the system design and sizing
- Location of the SAPS for easy access and servicing
Environmental & Safety Considerations relating to a national park:
- Identifying a discrete location to limit visibility
- Minimising ground disturbance
- Limiting the need for, and usage of, civil and heavy machinery
- Volatility of the coastal location, including the impact of sea salt, and extreme weather events such as lightening, flash flooding and heavy winds
- Challenges related to deployment on fragile, sandy soil
Customer Benefits
- A permanent utility grade off-grid solution which has proven in the long term to be more cost effective than traditional poles and wires.
- Higher quality, more reliable and cleaner power, which is no longer impacted by line maintenance or network damages.
- A resilient solution to the climatic risks of living in regional or isolated communities.
- Lower fuel costs, with minimal use of the back-up generator required.
- Minimal on-site maintenance required.
- Remote monitoring and troubleshooting leading to quicker detection of issues and faster resolution times.
