Why is there a marine reserve around Heard Island & McDonalds Islands?

Recognition of the unique and largely unmodified nature of the marine environment within the Australian EEZ around Heard Island and the McDonalds Islands led to the proposal for a marine reserve in 2001.

Are small island energy companies able to develop storage systems?

Small island energy companies do not typically have the research or engineering capability to internally assess the viability of storage projects. Small island power companies find it difficult to raise the required finance for implementation of storage systems. Project costs here can be very significant relative to the scale of the system.

Will near-mainland islands provide a significant export of RES-electricity?

Thus, in future, rather than importing electricity via interconnector, near-mainland islands may provide significant exports of RES-Electricity whilst accessing balancing power from the mainland, perhaps in combination with in-island generation and storage.

Why are the islands a challenge in the energy sector?

The islands represent an interesting dimension of European geography, and present a challenge in the energy sector. Most energy on islands is currently produced by diesel power generation, which is both costly, finite, and has relatively high carbon emissions. As a result, the situation will be forced to change in the medium term.

Should Islands be connected to mainland power systems?

At the cost of an often very significant capital investment, connecting islands to mainland power systems can significantly reduce the costs of electricity supply. Several techno-economic analyses have investigated relatively positive cases for interconnection, e.g. for several Greek islands and for Malta , .

Are Islands a better economic case for diesel generation?

Typically, islands represent a better economic case for the application of such technologies, both because of the potential of storage to alleviate the general issue of somewhat oversized generation on islands relative to load, but also because of the high cost of operating diesel generation.