ANEWLY CONSTRUCTED US$6.1M hydro project is expected to save the Fiji Electricity Authority US$1.6M a year in fuel costs for diesel generators.
The Wainikasou hydroelectric scheme would contribute 6MW of power generating capacity to the existing water diversion system that links the Wainisavulevu weir to the Monasavu dam. There are six weirs including Wainikasou, Wainisavulevu, Nabilabila, Wainaka, Wainimaliwa and Wainibua supplying water to the Monasavu dam.
To operate this system, the water collected at the Wainisavulevu weir was channelled through a 1.8m diameter tunnel which drops vertically about 114m to the turbines, where electricity is generated. The main project manager for the scheme was Pacific Hydro Limited of Australia.