Stream of power

ScottishPower Renewables is evaluating three separate coastal sites for the development of the world’s largest tidal stream projects.

Two of the sites are being planned in Scotland, in the Pentland Firth and the Sound of Islay, with the third off the North Antrim coast in Northern Ireland.

ScottishPower Renewables expects planning applications to be submitted to the Scottish Government and Northern Irish Assembly in summer 2009.

Each site is being evaluated with a view of installing between five and 20 tidal turbines. With each turbine having an installed capacity of 1MW, this could lead to a combined output of 60MW - enough green energy for over 40,000 homes. Following planning approval, the projects could be operational by 2011.

All three projects are expected to deploy the Lànstrøm tidal turbine developed by Hammerfest Strøm, a company jointly owned by ScottishPower Renewables, StatoilHydro and Hammerfest Energi.

The device’s name reflects the Norwegian and Scottish collaboration - being a combination of the Gaelic ‘làn’ meaning ‘full’ and the Norwegian ‘strøm’ meaning ‘tide’.