Detailed studies are to be conducted on three sites to assess their suitability for the setting up of wind farms, the Prime Minister said today.
The sites are at Hal Far, Wied Rini (near Mtahleb/Bahrija on the site which currently has communications masts) and offshore at Sikka l-Bajda at a depth which allows the building of wind farms using existing technology.
The studies will include wind force, aviation and maritime activity and the environmental impact.
“Today’s announcement marks the beginning of a detailed and open planning process where everyone will be invited to express himself,” Dr Gonzi told a press conference.
Dr Gonzi said the idea was to have a wind farm of 19 large turbines (5Mw each) at Sikka l-Bajda, a wind farm of 12 turbines at Wied Rini producing a total of 10MW and another of five turbines at Hal Far industrial estate producing 4MW. Their production will be equivalent to 9.6 percent of Malta's electricity demand.
“We are not excluding anything, not even the development of deep offshore wind farms, but we have to keep in mind that the government is bound by the target of producing 10 percent of its energy from clean, renewable sources by 2020, and the country therefore does not have the luxury of being able to wait for new technologies, without seeking to maximise all alternatives.” The 10 percent target includes the transport sector.
The offshore wind farm is expected to cost €280m and would be the biggest of the three, while the on shore projects would carry a price tag of between €13m and €18m. The government will issue tenders for the wind farms to be built by the private sector, with the government buying the electricity generated.
But, Dr Gonzi said, Malta would have to pay a heavy price if its target was not achieved.
Dr Gonzi said the government’s ultimate purpose was to boost the generation of clean energy, reduce dependence on oil, reduce harmful emissions, and thereby improve the quality of life of the people.
The Prime Minister said the three sites had been identified after a number of studies, and the government would be submitting to MEPA project description statements for the proposed sites. He said that the governemnt had asked leading consultants to reach their own conclusions on which sites appeared to be best for the location of wind farms.
He said that Malta had been the promoter of climate change action in the United Nations, but it should do at a national level what it expected to be done internationally.