SME secures funding for tidal energy in Orkney

Following extensive testing in 2014 and 2015 of the PLAT-O prototype in the Solent, SME has now moved its operational base to Orkney and will be grid connecting the first EMEC system over the coming months.

Support for the project has come from German tidal turbine manufacturer, SCHOTTEL HYDRO, whilst Scottish Enterprise has increased its investment to provide funding for the next phase of PLAT-O which is to prove the commercial viability for community scale arrays.

“We are really excited to be moving forward with our community array at EMEC,” said Jason Hayman, managing director of SME.

“This will show that second generation tidal energy technology really is commercially viable. It is fantastic that SCHOTTEL HYDRO is supporting us at this stage, and also that they have the confidence in the capability and potential of Scottish supply chain to deliver on this project.

“This is a long term commitment for SME and SCHOTTEL HYDRO and we are rapidly expanding our operations in Orkney, whilst benefitting from the experience of local contractors to drive down the costs of marine operations,” he added.

In addition to PLAT-O, SME is also pioneering the development of drilled rock anchors suitable for tidal sites, the installation of which has been proven at EMEC in the last quarter. The SME rock anchor system is the first of its kind in the world to be deployed at an energetic tidal site.

This latest deployment at EMEC will be followed by a larger 240kW platform with SCHOTTEL HYDRO Instream Turbines (SIT 250), the production of which will commence this summer, also in Scotland.