A solar installation comes into service in the Arctic, 1.300 km from the North Pole

Wisely aligned in six rows, 360 solar panels will begin Thursday to provide power to an old radio station formerly used for maritime traffic (Isfjord Radio) and today converted into a base camp for tourists on this Norwegian archipelago also known as the name of Spitsbergen.

Beaten by the winds and only accessible by boat or helicopter when the weather permits, this site is located a little over 1.300 km from the North Pole.

“We believe it is the northernmost ground-mounted photovoltaic system in the world,” Mons Ole Sellevold, the technical advisor for renewable energies at the state-owned company Store Norske, told AFP.

A first

“This is the first time that someone has done this on this scale in the Arctic,” he said, his rifle slung over his shoulder to possibly protect himself against polar bears, animals whose presence is quite common in these latitudes.

With 100 other panels installed on the former radio station itself, the device should, according to him, cover half of the electricity needs and reduce CO2 emissions from the site until now powered by diesel generators.

In summer, the sun's rays fall in abundance on this region bathed by the "midnight sun" which never sets. And photovoltaic panels also benefit from the “albedo” effect (reflective power) of ice and snow as well as low temperatures which increase their efficiency.

Conversely, in winter, the places are plunged into total darkness for several months, from the beginning of October to mid-February, which still makes it impossible to completely do without fossil fuels.

Pilot installation

But Store Norske says it is considering alternative solutions, such as wind turbines, to make its electricity supply even greener.

In addition to environmental considerations, this energy transition is driven by economic factors, with diesel being expensive to purchase and transport while solar equipment is easy to maintain and does not break down, Mr Sellevold said.

But the goal is also to serve as a pilot facility to test technology that could be exported to Arctic sites or communities, some 1.500, he says, that are not connected to traditional power grids but are will also have to “green up”, he clarified.

“We want to make Isfjord Radio a test site to (...) obtain technology tested in Arctic conditions which can then be broadcast in other places” of the same type, he said. He underlines.

According to a study published last year, the Arctic has warmed nearly four times faster than the rest of the world over the last 40 years, resulting in accelerated melting of its ice which is disrupting ecosystems and local populations but also affects the rest of the planet (rising water levels, climatic events, etc.).