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Santiago Island

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

CoverageDetailed public record
Named organizations6
System facts14
Sources reviewed9
Evidence reviewed2026-07-20

Santiago is Cabo Verde's largest isolated island power system, not one facility-level microgrid. Its documented renewable portfolio includes the 5 MWp Palmarejo Grande solar plant commissioned in 2010, Cabeólica's original 9.35 MW wind farm (11 Vestas V52 turbines), and a December 2025 expansion adding 13.5 MW of wind plus a 6 MW/6 MWh battery. Thermal generation and the island grid remain essential; no current island-wide renewable percentage or full generation mix was found.

Research status
The solar plant and original wind farm are operational. Cabeólica inaugurated the expanded Santiago wind farm and battery in December 2025, taking site wind capacity to approximately 22.85 MW (marketed as 23 MW). AfDB still labels the broader financing project ongoing with a 2027 completion horizon, apparently reflecting the multi-island/refinancing program rather than contradicting physical inauguration. No 2026 production or battery-throughput report was available.
Historical classification
Island
Reported capacity
See component specifications
Coordinates
15.08526, -23.62046
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 Santiago Island?

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

Organization

Africa Finance Corporation / African Development Bank and partners

Financing partners for Cabeólica Phase II and its multi-island battery portfolio. [8][9]

Organization

Cabeólica S.A.

Owner/operator of the wind farm and associated Phase II storage/expansion. [4][8]

Organization

Electra / EDEC

Island utility, grid operator/offtaker and thermal-generation operator. [5][9]

Organization

Martifer

Publicly named participant; role not specified in the recovered record [1]

Organization

Martifer Solar

EPC/developer of the 5 MWp Palmarejo Grande solar plant. [2][3]

Organization

Vestas

Supplier of the original V52 turbines and long-term fleet service provider. [4][6]

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
5000 [1]
KW Wind
9350 [1]
Solar PV
5 MWp Palmarejo Grande plant, inaugurated November 2, 2010; detailed current annual output, module replacement and availability were not found. [2][3]
Original wind
9.35 MW from eleven Vestas V52 850 kW turbines. In 2023 it generated 28,086 MWh at 96.1% availability and supplied 11% of island electricity. [4][5]
2025 expansion
Three 4.5 MW turbines, 13.5 MW added, bringing total wind to 22.85 MW (rounded 23 MW). New turbine manufacturer/model was not confirmed in authoritative public material reviewed. [7][8]
Battery
6 MW/6 MWh, one hour at rated output, commissioned with Phase II. Vendor, chemistry and model were not publicly established. [7][9]
Energy mix
Wind and solar reduce fuel use, but diesel/thermal generation remains the balancing and firm supply. The 11% figure is original-wind penetration in 2023, not total renewable share after the 2025 expansion. [5][8]

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

Original wind turbines

Vestas — V52-850 kW

Eleven units, 9.35 MW total; Vestas service was extended for eight years across the Cabeólica fleet. [4][6]

02

New wind turbines

Model not publicly disclosed

Three 4.5 MW units; exact manufacturer/model not verified. [7]

03

BESS

Model not publicly disclosed

6 MW/6 MWh grid-support battery; supplier and chemistry undisclosed. [9][7]

04

Solar PV

Martifer Solar (EPC)

5 MWp grid-connected plant at Palmarejo Grande. [2]

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.

  • System boundary

    Santiago's assets are connected across an island utility grid. The battery supports variable-renewable integration, but public sources do not establish black start or island-wide autonomous microgrid control beyond the grid already being geographically isolated. [9][8]

  • 2023 performance baseline

    The 28,086 MWh, 96.1% availability and 11% penetration metrics apply only to the original 9.35 MW wind farm before Phase II. [5]

  • Program-status nuance

    Physical Phase II inauguration occurred in December 2025, while development-bank reporting keeps the wider financing program open through 2027. Asset status and financing-program status should not be conflated. [7][9]

Provenance

9 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 2021-01-17

  2. [2]
    Government launches/records Santiago and Sal solar plants

    Government of Cabo Verde · Primary source

  3. [3]
  4. [4]
    Our history

    Cabeólica · Primary source

  5. [5]
    Cabeólica Annual Report 2023

    Cabeólica · Primary source

  6. [6]
    Cabeólica Annual Report 2024

    Cabeólica · Primary source

  7. [7]
    Santiago wind park expansion inaugurated

    Expresso das Ilhas · Secondary research

  8. [8]
  9. [9]
    Cabeólica Phase II

    African Development Bank · Primary source

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