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Ilse of Eigg Microgrid

Current status, energy mix, organizations, suppliers, equipment, controls, reported specifications, and project updates—with source-level citations.

CoverageDetailed public record
Named organizations21
System facts45
Sources reviewed8
Evidence reviewed2026-07-20

Eigg Electric is an operating, community-owned island microgrid commissioned in 2008. The current system combines about 170 kW of PV, 112 kW of hydro, 24 kW of wind, two 64 kW backup diesel generators, and a substantially upgraded Rolls/SMA battery system of roughly 714 kWh usable-to-50%-depth-of-discharge basis and 216 kW inverter capacity. Current project sources report approximately 93–95% renewable electricity, while a new 300 kW wind project remains in planning rather than operation.

Research status
Operating. Eigg Electric's official site is current, contractor records document PV and storage upgrades through 2024–2025, and Companies House shows the operating company filing accounts through March 2025. Three proposed 100 kW wind turbines are in planning and fundraising and must not be counted in present capacity.
Historical classification
Community
Reported capacity
488 kW
Coordinates
56.89953, -6.14161
Evidence note: “Every company” cannot be proven from public material alone. This page lists every organization found in the recovered record and reviewed sources, preserves unknown roles, and explicitly marks undisclosed controller or equipment details.
Report missing evidenceResearch methodology

Project delivery

Who was involved in Ilse of Eigg Microgrid?

21 publicly identified organizations. Where a recovered source named a participant without explaining its work, the role remains explicitly unspecified.

Organization

Big Lottery Fund

Project funder [3]

Organization

E-Connect Ventures Ltd.

Subcontractor [3]

Organization

Econnect

Original electrical-system and control design contributor [4]

Organization

Eigg Electric Ltd

Community-owned electricity-system operator [3][7]

Organization

Eigg Electric Ltd.

Community owner, operator, and maintenance organization [3]

Organization

Energy Renewed Ltd.

Subcontractor [3]

Organization

Energy Saving Trust

Project funder [3]

Organization

European Regional Development Fund

Project funder [3]

Organization

G.G. MacKenzie Contractors Ltd.

Subcontractor [3]

Organization

Gilbert Gilkes & Gordon

Manufacturer of the principal hydro turbine [3][4]

Organization

Highlands and Islands Enterprise / HIE Lochaber

Project funder [3]

Organization

Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust

Community landowner, project sponsor, and parent community institution [3][4]

Organization

Rolls Battery Engineering / Surrette

Supplier of original and replacement flooded lead-acid storage batteries [4][5]

Organization

Scottish Hydro Contracting

Main contractor for the original island electrical network [4]

Organization

Scottish Hydro Contracting Ltd.

Main design-build contractor [3]

Organization

SMA Solar Technology

Supplier of grid-forming battery inverters and newer PV inverters [4][5]

Organization

Synergie Scotland

Original project-management contributor [4]

Organization

Synergie Scotland Ltd.

Project manager [3]

Organization

The Highland Council

Project funder [3]

Organization

Wind & Sun Ltd

Renewable-energy and storage contractor for the original system and later upgrades [4]

Organization

Wind and Sun Ltd.

Subcontractor [3]

System evidence

Energy mix, capacity, and specifications

Values can describe different project phases, generation sources, storage systems, or other components. Source citations are attached to each figure so discrepancies remain visible.

KW Solar
32 [1]
KW Wind
24 [1]
KW Gas/Diesel
110 [1]
KW Hydro
110 [1]
Storage
212 kWh [1]
Hydroelectric generation
Three generators totaling approximately 110 kW [3][1]
Wind generation
Four turbines totaling 24 kW [3][1]
Solar PV
170 kW currently reported; archived record documented a 32 kW 2010 configuration [3][1]
Diesel backup
Two automatic 64 kW generators [3][1]
Archived battery bank
212 kWh Rolls Surrette flooded lead-acid [1]
Distribution grid
Approximately 11 km of buried high-voltage network [3]
Photovoltaic capacity
Approximately 170 kW current total; the 2022 expansion included 96.8 kWp ground-mounted and 21.1 kWp rooftop arrays [4]
Hydro capacity
Approximately 112 kW: one 100 kW Gilkes unit and two approximately 6 kW units [3][4]
Wind capacity
24 kW from four 6 kW turbines [3][4]
Current battery capacity
Approximately 714 kWh at 50% depth of discharge, following the 2024 storage upgrade [4][5]
Current battery inverter capacity
216 kW from twelve 18 kW three-phase inverter clusters [4][5]
Backup diesel
Two 64 kW generator sets [3]
Distribution
Approximately 11 km of underground 3.3 kV three-phase cable with 11 local transformers [3][4]
Renewable share
About 93% for the latest contractor-reported annual period and around 95% as the long-run figure reported by Eigg Electric [3][4]
Customer limits
5 kW for domestic connections and 10 kW / 40 A for businesses [3][6]
Proposed wind expansion
Three 100 kW turbines, totaling 300 kW, in planning/fundraising and not installed [3][6]

Controls and hardware

Equipment and controller details

Manufacturer and model are shown only when a source names them. Generic descriptions are not converted into guessed product assignments.

01

Wind turbines

Proven Energy

Four turbines totaling 24 kW. [1]

02

Wind inverters

SMA — Windy Boy 6000A

Used with the four Proven wind turbines. [1]

03

PV inverters

SMA — Sunny Boy 3000

Three units documented for the earlier PV configuration. [1]

04

Battery bank

Rolls Surrette

Archived capacity: 212 kWh flooded lead-acid. [1]

05

Battery cells

Rolls Battery Engineering — 5000 Series 4V 4 KS 25P

Flooded lead-acid cells selected for the storage replacement; contractor reporting indicates the 120-battery upgrade was completed in 2024 [5][4]

06

Battery inverters

SMA Solar Technology — Sunny Island SI-8.0H-13

Grid-forming inverter clusters with an SMA Multicluster Box MC-Box 36; total upgraded inverter power approximately 216 kW [5][4]

07

PV modules

REC-440AA

Modules used in the 2022 96.8 kWp ground-mounted and 21.1 kWp rooftop additions [4]

08

PV inverters

SMA Solar Technology — STP-20000TL

Inverters used for the 2022 PV expansion [4]

09

Hydro turbine

Gilbert Gilkes & Gordon

100 kW principal hydro unit, supplemented by two smaller approximately 6 kW machines [3][4]

10

Wind turbines

Proven Energy

Four 6 kW turbines, 24 kW total [3][4]

11

Backup generation

Model not publicly disclosed

Two automatic-start 64 kW diesel generators; manufacturer and model are not identified [3]

12

Customer monitoring

OWL

In-home energy monitors help customers remain within connection limits [3]

Technical record

Architecture, performance, and project updates

Concise technical facts, milestones, operating results, and later developments. Dated notes distinguish historical design claims from current evidence.

  • Storage

    Storage: 212 kWh Rolls Surrette FLA [1]

  • Generation

    Hydro: 3 x Hydro generators, 110 kW (Major renewable energy source) providing sufficient power most of the year, except in summer months [1]

  • Generation

    Wind: 4 x Proven wind turbines connected to Windy Boy 6000A, 24 kW (Second largest renewable resource), providing power throug entire year, lowest yield in summer [1]

  • Generation

    PV: 165 Watt modules with 3 Sunny Boy 3000, a 10 kWp (Smallest renewable resource), provides additional power in summer months- upgraded to 32kW in 2010 [1]

  • Generation

     Diesel Generator: 2 x 64kW, primarily backup [1]

  • Grid forming

    SMA Sunny Island battery inverters establish island voltage and frequency and coordinate renewable generation, storage, and diesel backup. [4][5]

  • Diesel automation

    The generators automatically start at approximately 50% battery state of charge and stop around 90%. [3]

  • Surplus-energy control

    Frequency-based controls route excess energy to community heating loads and wind dump heaters and can throttle hydro output when batteries are full. [3][4]

  • Storage evolution

    The original system had roughly 212 kWh usable at 50% depth of discharge and 60 kW of inverter capacity; an intermediate configuration reached about 530 kWh and 156 kW before the 2024 upgrade to roughly 714 kWh and 216 kW. [4][5]

  • Reliability and energy mix

    Diesel is standby firm capacity, not the dominant annual energy source. The official site says diesel generators run less than 17% of the time on average; this runtime percentage is not the same as energy share. [3]

  • Electrification constraint

    The 5 kW household cap limits simultaneous electric heating, transport, cooking, and conventional loads. Current planning includes a second 5 kW household circuit for electrification growth. [6]

  • Corporate continuity

    Eigg Electric Ltd remains active in the UK register with accounts filed through the year ending March 2025, corroborating ongoing institutional operation. [7]

Provenance

8 sources

Primary owner, government, university, supplier, and engineering sources are preferred. Archived references preserve claims whose original pages moved or disappeared.

  1. [1]
    Recovered Microgrid Projects record

    Internet Archive · Archived source · captured 2021-04-20

  2. [2]
    http://www.isleofeigg.org/eigg_electric.html

    isleofeigg.org · Archived source · captured 2021-04-20

  3. [3]
    Eigg Electric

    Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust / Eigg Electric · Primary source

  4. [4]
  5. [5]
  6. [6]
    Eigg Electric case study

    Local Energy Scotland · Primary source

  7. [7]
    Eigg Electric Ltd company record

    UK Companies House · Primary source

  8. [8]
    Isle of Eigg Microgrid (archived legacy record)

    Microgrid Projects / Internet Archive · Archived source

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