Pioneering Tidal Power Device To Be Tested In Scotland

2nd February 2010

Hammerfest Strøm and ScottishPower Renewables Closer to Major Tidal Power Project

Hammerfest Strøm UK Ltd, subsidiary of the Norwegian tidal power developer Hammerfest Strøm AS, has today (Tuesday 2nd February, 2010) received a £ 3.9 million grant from the Carbon Trust for the construction and testing of a 1 MW tidal power device at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in Orkney.

The tidal turbine, known as HS1000, is expected to be fully operational in Orkney by 2011. Hammerfest Strøm UK has already completed the design and pre-engineering and is now tendering for fabrication and installation. After a test period, the company will work with ScottishPower Renewables who have plans to install the device as part of a 10MW tidal power array in the Sound of Islay by 2012. This project will be the largest demonstration tidal power project in the world and put ScottishPower Renewables at the forefront of global tidal power developers.

Hammerfest Strøm UK's Managing Director Fraser McCreadie said: "The Carbon Trust grant is very welcome in assisting the prototype development of the HS1000 device. The Norwegian parent company has in addition engaged KPMG to assist in raising a further £12 million for further commercial development of the company. We are approaching a broad selection of potential investors including industrial entities, utilities, venture capitalists and private funds. We will soon be preparing serial production and seeking long-term supply chain partnerships."

The HS1000 device is designed based on a 300kW prototype, which has been installed in Kvalsundet in Norway for the last six years. The prototype device was the first turbine in the world to convert kinetic energy in tidal waters to electricity and deliver to the grid in 2004, and is regarded as one of the most advanced tidal power technologies in the world. Recently re-installed in Kvalsundet, the turbine is going through a second test period, where it continues to produce electricity for the Norwegian grid and is monitored to detect further improvements in technology that can be applied to future generations of the turbine.

Keith Anderson, Director of ScottishPower Renewables, said: "We firmly believe that the tidal turbine developed by Hammerfest Strøm is the most advanced and rigorously tested device anywhere in the world. The grant from the Carbon Trust will enable the first deployment of the turbine in Scottish waters, where we have ambitious plans to further utilise the device at a number of locations to take advantage of the fantastic tidal resources that Scotland has to offer.

"Scotland is blessed with an abundance of renewable energy potential, and tidal offers perhaps the greatest source of power. The deployment of the HS1000 device is a major milestone in Scotland's ambitions to tap-in to this new source of energy."