Wales’ first tidal farm moves closer; Siemens and Rolls-Royce join in Plan ...

Wales’ first tidal farm moves closer; Siemens and Rolls-Royce join in Plans by Marine Current Turbines (MCT) and its project partner RWE npower renewables to install and operate Wales’s first tidal energy farm have moved a step closer with the granting of an agreement for lease by the Crown Estate for the Skerries Tidal Stream Array, which is proposed for the waters off the coast of Anglesey, north Wales. The proposed tidal energy scheme consists of up to 9 turbines in an area between the Skerries group of rocks and islands and Carmel Head about 1 km off the Anglesey coast. The 10 MW scheme, which has already benefited from funding from the Welsh European Funding Office, will be capable of generating enough power to supply approximately 20% of Anglesey’s electricity demand, says MCT. The Crown Estate will issue the project a lease, a necessary pre-condition for any offshore sea-bed installation in UK waters, once the required environmental consents for the project have been granted by the Welsh government. The consents application was submitted in March and MCT is now ramping up its efforts to raise the finance to build the tidal array. The estimated project cost is £70mn. Since the current plans for the Skerries Tidal Stream Array were announced, MCT has also announced that Siemens is to increase its share in the company, which now employs 25 people, to 45%. Meanwhile, global power systems company Rolls-Royce has achieved a significant milestone in the deployment of tidal energy technology with confirmation that its prototype tidal turbine, located subsea off the Orkney Islands, Scotland, has successfully generated and fed over 100 MWh of electrical power into the national grid. The 500 kW tidal turbine prototype was designed and built by Rolls-Royce wholly owned subsidiary Tidal Generation. Installed as part of the Deep-Gen III project, co-funded by the Technology Strategy Board, the Rolls-Royce prototype tidal turbine is currently deployed at the European Marine Energy Centre’s (EMEC) offshore test site off the Orkney Islands, Scotland. The tidal unit’s three-bladed turbine is attached by a tripod to the seabed and can operate, fully submerged at water depth of 40 m. Its innovative design allows the turbine to continually rotate to face the incoming tide at an optimal angle. RR - 10276934.jpg The Rolls-Royce prototype tidal turbine being towed to site