Blowing Wind is Growing Power

Wind – a “natural resource” which is free of costs and in unlimited supply. But how do you turn wind into electricity? When the wind hits the turbine, the rotor of the installation first transforms its kinetic energy into mechanical rotational energy and then a generator converts it into electric power. The taller the wind turbine and the longer the rotor blades, the better the use of the wind’s energy.

Regions with a lot of wind can therefore ideally exploit the full potential of this natural resource. As opposed to fossil fuels, wind energy avoids damages to environment and health and also reduces the greenhouse effect. Another advantage is that when the turbine’s life cycle expires after approximately 20–25 years, it can be dismantled quickly and sustainably and most of its parts can be recycled.

BONNY, our supplier of cucumbers and blueberries from Gran Canaria, is one of those who use this technique to produce their own green power.

The climate on the third largest of the Canary Islands is very beneficial to the cultivation of fruit and vegetables all year round. The soil of volcanic origin is very fertile and enables the 235 hectares farms to produce high quality fruit and vegetables. To do so, however, they need a sufficient amount of energy for the entire process from cultivation to packing and shipping.

At this moment in time, the majority of Gran Canaria’s electric power still comes from power plants fuelled by oil. Being the responsible company that they are, BONNY wants to reduce their dependence on this carbon intensive energy source and instead exploit the island’s potential for renewable energy – constantly blowing wind and more than 3,000 hours of sunshine per year make this possible. As a consequence, BONNY installed two wind parks that generate approximately 6,800 kW / year and cover up to 2/3 of the company’s energy demand. The rest of the energy is generated by four solar parks.

All this enables BONNY to produce practically all of the energy they need in a climate-friendly way. We are talking about nearly 11 million kWh per year, which equals more or less 98 % of their entire energy demand.

True to the motto “Blowing wind is growing power”, they are now planning three more wind parks with the objective of being able to produce all their high quality fruit and vegetables with green energy in the future.

With this project BONNY supports the following SDGs:

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