World's largest tidal turbine deployed
The world’s largest tidal turbine has been successfully deployed on its subsea berth in 35m of water at the European Marine Energy Centre in Orkney, Scotland.
The installation of Atlantis Resources’ AK1000 tidal turbine was carried out in conjunction with Hallin Marine, who loaded the 22.5m-high, 1,300-tonne structure onto the DOF vessel the Skandi Skolten, after which it was taken to Orkney.
Once there, it took seven days to install a gravity base structure, over 1,000 tonnes of ballast blocks and, finally, the turbine nacelle, complete with its twin set of 18m-diameter rotors.
The AK1000 will now undergo electrical connection to the power-export cable recently laid by EMEC at its facility, which is located at the Fall of Warness in Orkney. The operations are expected to take up to two weeks, depending on weather conditions.
The AK1000 will then be put though a commissioning and operation programme that will last up to three years. Once operational, the power generated from the turbine will be dispatched into the local grid in Scotland.
Atlantis Resource has established a dedicated control centre on the Island of Eday, from which the turbine can be controlled and monitored.
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