Long-term contract to test PLAT-O in Orkney
Sustainable Marine Energy (SME) Ltd has signed a long-term testing contract with the Orkney-based European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) Ltd.
SME will be taking on one of the berths at the Fall of Warness tidal test site, where it will deploy five PLAT-O systems in an array over the next two years. This array will host SCHOTTEL SIT turbines and will deliver almost 1MW capacity.
PLAT-O is a buoyant platform that is taut moored to the seabed and sits under the surface of the water — not only, says SEM, offering enhanced yield and survivability but also means that surface vessels can pass safely overhead. Besides a surface marker buoy, the system is not visible on the surface.
A 100kW PLAT-O prototype is currently undergoing testing, initially off the Isle of Wight. It will be grid-connected at EMEC during 2015. A 200kW commercial demonstrator will be deployed in 2016, with three more systems to follow.
This move has been backed and supported by the Scottish Government with the award of nearly ÂŁ1.3m from the WATERS3 programme.
Jason Hayman, managing director of SME said: “This has been the result of many months of work and I would like to thank Scottish Enterprise, EMEC and all the SME team for their hard work and support. At a time when commentators are talking the industry down, we can demonstrate that there is a new cost-effective model to watch.”