We have just returned from 4 days at Goombaragin, about 140 km North of Broome on the coast in Pender Bay. Goombaragin Is a family run small scale indigenous tourism business with facilities for camping and self contained Eco accommodation.
As subscribers of GeeksGobush will know we are fond of solar power and run all our electrical needs from around 1/2 kW of portable solar panels charging 170 Ah of lithium battery storage.
Goombaragin Is also solar self sufficient but on a much larger scale. I had the privilege of a guided tour of the facility with John from Goombaragin.
As you can see it comprises 4 kW of solar panels which charges a huge battery bank comprising 60 12v 1400ah cells. This then fed into a series of inverters which create mains power for the entire site.
CC licensed flickr image by sridgway
It also has a 15 Kw diesel backup generator which will kick in and charge the batteries if the solar array is not providing enough energy.
There are some more images in the GeeksgoBush flickr group for those interested.
I was a an awesome setup and a great example of green power being generated in a remote community. Many of the larger camping areas we have been to in remote areas relay on huge noisy disiel generators which run 24/7.
Currently the array is generating around 4 times the requirements of the people staying at Goombaragin at any given time so they have quite a bit of head room.
A great example of how effective solar energy can be for a community in a remote area.