Case studies

When Maree Handy built on a remote property near Fairlie in South Canterbury, she had
the choice of connecting to the nearby electricity lines or building her own stand alone
power system. Being independent from the grid and never receiving another power bill
was appealing - so she opted for her own ‘little power station'.

When this homeowner built on a remote property near Fairlie in South Canterbury, she had the choice of connecting to the nearby electricity lines or building her own stand alone power system. Being independent from the grid and never receiving another power bill was appealing - so she opted for her own ‘little power station'.

This report reviews the installation of small-scale renewable electricity generation systems on five islands around New Zealand, on Department of Conservation bases. The report reviews the economics and performance of the systems, the potential benefits that accrue from switching from diesel-fuelled generation to systems incorporating photovoltaic modules and micro hydro units, and sensitivity analysis to test the economics under a number of scenarios.