The 680-tonne tidal turbine, called “the world’s most powerful tsunami turbine”, has started grid-connected power generation at the European Offshore Energy Center in the Orkney Islands north of Scotland. The news marks another significant step forward for the emerging marine energy sector in Europe and the UK.
Scottish engineering firm Orbital Marine Power said in a Wednesday announcement that the 2-megawatt O2 turbine was anchored in the water body called Fall of Warness. and a submarine cable to the onshore local electricity grid.
The 74-meter-long turbine is expected to operate in
The turbine is also planned to send energy to an onshore electrolyser, which will produce so-called green hydrogen. Andrew Scott, CEO of Orbital Marine Power, called Wednesday’s news a major milestone for O2 in a statement.
The construction of O2 was financed by public creditors through Abundance Investment. The Scottish Government has also provided £ 3.4 million in support through the Saltire Tidal Energy Challenge Fund.
According to Michael Matheson, the Scottish Government’s Minister for Net Emissions, Energy and Transport, his country to take advantage of the huge global market for marine energy “. Looking to the future, Orbital Marine Power said it had “targeted” the commercial exploitation of its technology through the installation of multi-megawatt systems.
The extremely long British coastline is home to a number of offshore energy projects. It was announced in April that a one-year research project focusing on the potential of tidal, wave and floating wind energy technology was supported by the Marine program, which focuses on innovation in areas such as marine energy. The project will take place in the archipelago off the south-west coast of England in the Isles of Scilly
There is also potential in rivers. In March, the London Port Authority gave the green light to test tidal energy technology on a section of the Thames that could ultimately contribute to the decarbonisation of river-related operations.
Although interest in marine-based energy systems is growing it seems larger, the current footprint of the industry and technologies is still small. Data from Ocean Energy Europe show that only 260 kilowatts (kW) of tidal capacity was built in Europe last year, while only 200 kW was installed to extract wave energy. In contrast, 14.7 gigawatts of new wind capacity was created in Europe in 2020, according to the WindEurope industry organization.
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