Spanish tidal energy developer Magallanes Renovables is testing its tidal technology on a test site at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in Orkney, Scotland.
The successful installation of their second generation (2G) 2MW tidal platform ‘ATIR’ took place on 16th February and marks a major milestone in the Ocean_2G project, which aims to test, validate and pre-certify Magallanes’ device, said a release from EMEC.
The ATIR was built and launched in Vigo, Spain in 2017, where it underwent a structured test programme to optimise the system, ensuring the device performs at its best.
After this successful period of testing, the ATIR was towed from Spain to Orkney in September 2018.
After months of careful planning and close working between the project partners, Orkney based marine service provider Leask Marine was able to successfully execute the operation at the weekend.
The ATIR will now undergo commissioning on site prior to being connected to the national grid.
Alejandro Marques de Magallanes, CEO, Magallanes Renovables, explained: “The journey to Orkney was no mean feat, but the team managed to skilfully navigate their way in harsh weather conditions, through some of Europe’s most challenging seas.We are very pleased to have the ATIR installed at EMEC.
"This marks a major milestone for the project and is a great achievement for our dedicated team after years of building up to this point.The next step in the project will be to start the testing programme at the Fall of Warness. We look forward to demonstrating the outputs of this pioneering prototype and generating electricity into the national grid in the near future,” he aded.
EMEC’s Managing Director, Neil Kermode, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Magallanes back to Orkney following their 1:10 scale tests at EMEC in 2014. By deploying the ATIR here, Magallanes have joined the family of technologies benefiting from the UK’s centre of excellence for marine renewable innovation."