Alstom’s tidal turbine reaches milestone

From its immersion back in January of this year at the European Marine Energy Centre Fall of Warness test site off Eday, Alstom’s full-scale tidal device has reached the full nominal power of 1MW after a series of gradual increases in power.

The turbine connected to the grid has now generated over 10MWh of electricity, in actual operating conditions. Both are major milestones in the development of the tidal stream energy.

The tidal turbine has been tested in different operational conditions.

The next step of the testing program will be to demonstrate the full range of autonomous running capabilities of the turbine – its ability to efficiently operate independently – and continue with the planned maintenance and gather evidence for certification.

The endurance and reliability will also be tested until 2014.

Tests in pilot farms will follow prior to the start of full commercial production.

“We are enthusiastic following the initial tests of our tidal stream turbine which successfully demonstrated the advantages of Alstom tidal turbine technology, in the challenging environment of the Fall of Warness in Orkney”,  stated Alstom Ocean business vice-president Rob Stevenson.

Alstom’s tidal turbine has  a twenty-two metres long nacelle and weighs 150 tonnes. Its rotor has three pitchable blades and a diameter of 18m.