Partnership Agreed with General Electric to develop the world’s largest tidal stream turbine

14 May 2019

SIMEC ATLANTIS ENERGY LIMITED

Partnership Agreed with General Electric to develop the world’s largest tidal stream turbine

SIMEC Atlantis Energy Limited (“Atlantis”), a world leading developer of sustainable energy generation projects, is pleased to announce that its Turbine and Engineering Services Division (ATES) will enter into a Technology Partnership and Preferred Supplier Agreement (TPPSA) with GE’s Power Conversion business (GE), a global leader in power conversion.

Under the terms of the partnership agreement, both parties will work together and share resources for the ongoing development of utility scale tidal energy generation and associated energy storage solutions. They will also engage in joint marketing activities to promote their innovative new subsea connection technologies and the wider benefits of cleaner, predictable tidal energy.

Atlantis and GE have already been working in partnership since September 2018 on the development and performance validation of Atlantis’ AR2000 tidal generation system, which is expected to be the world’s largest and most powerful single axis turbine available. This record-breaking system is expected to be deployed on future phases of Atlantis’ iconic MeyGen Project in Scotland and will also be available for sale to commercial developers.

With their abundant experience in tidal stream turbine development and power conversion, the two parties will work jointly to help achieve efficient, sustainable solutions for the delivery of low-cost tidal power.

The partnership will play a key role in the delivery of equipment and services to the second phase of the MeyGen Project, known as Project Stroma, which will see two additional Atlantis AR2000 turbines connected via a new subsea hub to a single power export cable which will then be connected via the MeyGen substation to the National Grid.

Drew Blaxland, Director of ATES, commented:  

“GE is a world leader in power conversion equipment development and supply. The AR2000 is expected to be the world’s largest single axis tidal turbine and it will be deployed on the world’s largest tidal power project. We want to partner with the world’s best companies; leaders in technology and innovation. This agreement with GE is a clear demonstration of our commitment to working with industry leading companies to deliver utility scale tidal power.  As the sole supplier of turbine generation equipment to the second phase of the MeyGen Project in Scotland, partnering with GE unlocks enormous opportunities to build on 10 years of R&D to now deliver more cost-effective, cleaner tidal power solutions for developers around the world.

“We expect that the AR2000 will become the system of choice for developers of tidal power projects around the world. Developed and built in Britain and then exported around the world.”

Peter Oram, Commercial Director of GE’s Power Conversion business, commented:

“We are delighted to be working together towards cleaner energy solutions – harnessing natural resources, like tidal energy, and applying GE’s efficient MV power conversion technologies allows us to turn this abundant source of energy into reliable, predictable power, for the UK and the world.”

Enquiries:

SIMEC Atlantis Energy Limited via FTI Consulting
Tim Cornelius, Chief Executive Officer

Andrew Dagley, Chief Financial Officer

 

FTI Consulting

 

+44 (0)20 3727 1000

Ben Brewerton

Alex Beagley

James Styles

Molly Stewart

Notes to Editors

SIMEC Atlantis Energy 

SIMEC Atlantis Energy is the global developer, owner and operator of sustainable energy projects with a diverse portfolio of more than 1,000 megawatts in various stages of development. This includes a 77% stake in the world’s largest tidal stream power project, MeyGen, and the conversion of the 220MW Uskmouth Power Station from coal to waste.

Atlantis is the undisputed world leader in the development of tidal power projects and tidal power generation and subsea connection systems.

The AR2000 system will be 25 meters in total height from the seabed with a 20 meter rotor diameter rated at 3.1m/s. The complete turbine will weigh 150 tonnes and the rotor will rotate at between 6 and 14 rotations per minute. The subsea connection system will take less than 30 minutes and require no additional intervention.

https://staging.saerenewables.com/

 

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