Tidal Turbine Pioneers Advance to Phase Two
An artists impression of the SeaGen twin rotor megawatt prototype system due for installation in 2005.
Hampshire UK based Marine Current Turbines (MCT) has successfully closed a £ 3m equity funding round and launched a programme to develop a successor to the Seaflow Project , the world's first 300kW offshore tidal turbine.
MCT's successor venture will be known as the 'SeaGen Project', with a grid connected twin rotor machine following on as the next stage of the development of a commercial tidal stream turbine. The first megawatt prototype system will be developed in a £6m project, with installation scheduled for next year.
The investment round has seen existing major investors such as Electricite de France increase their equity stake and new investors join in. BankInvest, a major Danish venture capitalist firm with a specialist energy focus, led the funding round and were joined by Guernsey Electricity, which has access to one of the most energetic tidal sites in western Europe.
The new technology works on the same principles as a windmill, with large underwater rotors shaped like propellers driven by the huge masses of flowing water to be found at certain locations in the sea.
The rotors then drive electrical generators through large gearboxes.
The fundamental advantages of the technology over rivals such as wind, wave and solar energy are led by the predictability of tidal currents delivering reliable power inherently more valuable than randomly available power.
Advocates claim that a 1MW tidal turbine can access five to ten times as much energy per square metre of rotor than a 1MW wind turbine, resulting in a smaller and potentially lower cost machine.
The tidal turbines will have minimal visual or environmental impact and, as conditions under the sea during a storm are relatively benign, the technology is relatively immune to the effects of storms and waves compared to offshore wind and wave systems.
MJ Information No: 19306
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