Golan Heights Wind Farm
Encyclopedia
The Golan Heights Wind Farm is an Israeli wind farm located 1050 m above sea level on Mount Bnei Rasan 5 km south of Quneitra
in the Golan Heights. The wind farm
was built in 1992 by the Mey Eden
(Waters of Eden) mineral water company, supported by the then-Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure.
It includes 10 Floda 600 wind turbines generating 6 MW in total. The energy is consumed by the Mey Eden
plant, the Golan Heights Winery
and about 20,000 people. The remaining energy is fed into the electrical grid.
Mey Eden
built Israel's first wind farm, or even the first commercial wind-power project in the Middle East
.
The installation was based upon an extensive wind resource assessment
carried out in 20 sites in the Golan Heights for about three years.
village Majdal Shams
to moshav
Alonei HaBashan
and will be built predominantly within privately owned orchards.
The partnership between Mey Golan and US energy giant AES Corporation
is worth $600 million.
According to the Israeli Foreign Ministry a number of wind farms are planned in the Galilee
, the Arava
and the Negev
. A number of actions was taken, among those are:
Quneitra
Quneitra is the largely destroyed and abandoned capital of the Quneitra Governorate in south-western Syria. It is situated in a high valley in the Golan Heights at an elevation of 1,010 metres above sea level...
in the Golan Heights. The wind farm
Wind farm
A wind farm is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electric power. A large wind farm may consist of several hundred individual wind turbines, and cover an extended area of hundreds of square miles, but the land between the turbines may be used for agricultural or other...
was built in 1992 by the Mey Eden
Mey Eden
Mey Eden is the brand name of the company Eden Springs Ltd. which is an Israeli mineral water marketing company.Mey Eden is a leading mineral water company in Israel. The brand and company were created in 1980 after development of the Salukia wellspring in Katzrin, Golan Heights...
(Waters of Eden) mineral water company, supported by the then-Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure.
It includes 10 Floda 600 wind turbines generating 6 MW in total. The energy is consumed by the Mey Eden
Mey Eden
Mey Eden is the brand name of the company Eden Springs Ltd. which is an Israeli mineral water marketing company.Mey Eden is a leading mineral water company in Israel. The brand and company were created in 1980 after development of the Salukia wellspring in Katzrin, Golan Heights...
plant, the Golan Heights Winery
Golan Heights Winery
The Golan Heights Winery is an Israeli winery located in Katzrin, built on the site of an agricultural village from the Mishnaic period in the Golan Heights.-History:...
and about 20,000 people. The remaining energy is fed into the electrical grid.
Mey Eden
Mey Eden
Mey Eden is the brand name of the company Eden Springs Ltd. which is an Israeli mineral water marketing company.Mey Eden is a leading mineral water company in Israel. The brand and company were created in 1980 after development of the Salukia wellspring in Katzrin, Golan Heights...
built Israel's first wind farm, or even the first commercial wind-power project in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
.
The installation was based upon an extensive wind resource assessment
Wind resource assessment
Wind resource assessment is the process by which wind power developers estimate the future energy production of a wind farm. Accurate wind resource assessments are crucial to the successful development of wind farms.- History :...
carried out in 20 sites in the Golan Heights for about three years.
Future plans
Mineral water company Mey Golan (Waters of Golan) was granted a license to build a $500 million and 400 MW wind farm also on the Golan Heights. The project consists of about 150 turbines spread over 140 km,2 in north-eastern Golan Heights from the DruzeDruze
The Druze are an esoteric, monotheistic religious community, found primarily in Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan, which emerged during the 11th century from Ismailism. The Druze have an eclectic set of beliefs that incorporate several elements from Abrahamic religions, Gnosticism, Neoplatonism...
village Majdal Shams
Majdal Shams
Majdal Shams is a Druze village in the northern part of the Golan Heights, in the southern foothills of Mt. Hermon. Since the June 1967 Six-Day War, the village has been controlled by Israel, first under martial law, but since 1981 under Israeli civil law, and incorporated into the Israeli...
to moshav
Moshav
Moshav is a type of Israeli town or settlement, in particular a type of cooperative agricultural community of individual farms pioneered by the Labour Zionists during the second aliyah...
Alonei HaBashan
Alonei HaBashan
Alonei HaBashan is an Israeli settlement, moshav shitufi, located in the central Golan Heights, under the administration of Israel. The settlement was built in 1981, and its name is taken from the Bible . "Bashan" is a Biblical name for the Golan Heights. It falls under the municipal jurisdiction...
and will be built predominantly within privately owned orchards.
The partnership between Mey Golan and US energy giant AES Corporation
AES Corporation
AES Corporation is a Fortune 500 company that generates and distributes electrical power. The company was founded on January 28, 1981, as Applied Energy Services by Roger Sant from the US Federal Energy Administration and Dennis Bakke from the Office of Management and Budget. AES Corporation is...
is worth $600 million.
According to the Israeli Foreign Ministry a number of wind farms are planned in the Galilee
Galilee
Galilee , is a large region in northern Israel which overlaps with much of the administrative North District of the country. Traditionally divided into Upper Galilee , Lower Galilee , and Western Galilee , extending from Dan to the north, at the base of Mount Hermon, along Mount Lebanon to the...
, the Arava
Arabah
The Arabah , also known as Aravah, is a section of the Great Rift Valley running in a north-south orientation between the southern end of the Sea of Galilee down to the Dead Sea and continuing further south where it ends at the Gulf of Aqaba. It includes most of the border between Israel to the...
and the Negev
Negev
The Negev is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The Arabs, including the native Bedouin population of the region, refer to the desert as al-Naqab. The origin of the word Neghebh is from the Hebrew root denoting 'dry'...
. A number of actions was taken, among those are:
- Identification of wind-intensive sites
- Granting and licensing assistance to wind farm developers
- R&D support