The energy division manager on Mangaia says the Cook Islands government needs to be more committed to ensuring its pilot renewable energy resource project succeeds.
Two wind energy turbines were installed on Mangaia in 2002, set up by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community and the South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission.
The island's energy division manager, Anthony Whyte, says when everything works the wind towers can provide up to 20 percent of the island's energy.
But he says with mechanical and electronic failures, the turbines don't often work.
Mr Whyte says with proper resource and financial assistance, he'd be able to make sure the wind turbines are of great benefit to Mangaia.
"Diesel is such a difficult thing to get, it costs so much money by the time it's shipped to the outer islands you've got to look at other alternative ways of producing your electricity. Really the Cook Islands government job to make sure we can provide that service. And if we can provide that service not only with diesel generation but also wind turbine we're going a long way towards doing something about the fossil fuel problem."
Mangaia's energy division manager, Anthony Whyte.
