Aran Islands wave their green credentials in eco car road test

BRIGHT orange electric cars will soon be part of the Aran Islands’ landscape.

Due to their small size and abundance of wind energy, the islands have been chosen as a test ground for a fleet of eco cars.

Up to 24 households on Inis Mór, Inis Meáin and Inis Oirr will be participating in the three-year pilot project to demonstrate the smart grid technologies needed to transfer and store wind energy in the cars.

Eight of the Mega e-City cars were delivered to islanders yesterday. One of the women chosen as part of the competition open to all islanders was Caitríona Ní Bhuachalla, a primary school teacher at Scoil Eoghanachta on Inis Mór.

“Up to this I was driving a Rover and I was probably spending €20-€30 a week on diesel. I hear that it will only cost me about €90-€180 per year in electricity to run this car and I will get up to 60km out of the battery before needing to charge again,” Caitríona said.

She has had an charging point installed outside her home and this will link back to the smart charger unit in her home. This will record data such as the amount of mileage she’s doing and how much electricity she is using. Next year, the project will be extended so that it will integrate fully with wind and wave resources around the island.

The scheme is coordinated by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) and the Department of Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs. Next year, another further eight cars will be handed over and the same again in 2013.

Each household has been fitted with an innovative smart charger unit that can be accessed remotely to allow matching of available wind power with vehicle charging requirements.

The Government is planning to have 10% of passenger vehicles electric vehicles by 2020.

Government policy is to put 6,000 electric vehicles on the road by 2012.

Following a public procurement process, the vehicles have been supplied by Greenmachines.

Another Irish company, Klockner Moeller, developed the smart charging units to meet the Irish authority’s technical requirements.