Of the ten units on the Okinawa main island, six are in Ginoza Village. Hirara City's Cape Nishi-henna boasts five generators with two at Nanamata. The total output of 2,800 kW provides electricity for 2,000 households. The Okinawa Electric Power Company is planning to meld the diesel power generators now set on 12 remote islands into hybrid systems using wind power and power storage. The average cost of electricity in the outlying islands is 1.6 times the cost on the main Okinawa island.
People sometimes pay even more.
For the power company, the wind power supported hybrid system means substantial cuts in the high cost of power in the outlying islands. Following six months of studies, work began on a wind power generator in January of 1957 with the cooperation of the Vehicle Maintenance Office. In August, it succeeded in turning on its first light bulb using the generator. Following the war, power was restored to the urban areas of the main island of Okinawa, primarily to serve the many U.S. servicemen stationed there. Residents of the outlying islands, however, continued to live with small lamps.