Scotrenewables (Marine Power) Ltd awards contract for manufacture of 250kw Tidal Turbine (SRTT) prototype to Harland and Wolff. (08 July 2010)

Scotrenewables from the Orkneys has appointed H&W to manufacture a prototype tidal turbine

Harland and Wolff Heavy Industries Limited has been awarded the contract to build the latest cutting edge prototype tidal turbine by Orkneys-based Scotrenewables (Marine Power) Ltd.

The 30m long 250kw device comprises two 8m diameter rotors. The prototype will be manufactured in Belfast before being deployed at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) test facility in the Orkneys.

Harland and Wolff Engineering Manager Fred Black says: “We have been very active in the renewables market for many years now.”

“Scotrenewables tidal turbine belongs to a small group of developers who have concentrated not just on the conversion technology, but importantly on making the device easy to install and maintain.

“Our input was to assist their engineers develop the design to make it production friendly. This makes it cheaper to manufacture and enhances quality,” says Mr Black.

Scotrenewables’ Project Leader Mark Hamilton said he was pleased with the progress so far and was looking forward to seeing the full-scale device in Orkney waters.

“This stage of the project is particularly exciting as after years of successful numerical and physical model testing and development we have now placed an order for the full-scale device,” says Mr Hamilton.

“This is a great achievement for us and is testament to the hard work and dedication of all the team. There is a lot of hard work left to do in proving the long-term viability of our technology, but testing to date has produced very promising results. The market for our technology both in the UK and worldwide is huge – we aim to be at the forefront of the future tidal energy industry.

“We have chosen Harland & Wolff to construct the SR250 prototype because of their outstanding pedigree in the field of ship-building, offshore oil & gas and more recently offshore renewables. Their project support to date has been extremely valuable and we look forward to completing construction at their facilities by the end of this year”.

Scotrenewables founder Barry Johnston says: “Over the years we have had to overcome a number of challenges with this project and I’m delighted that things are progressing well. We are competing with hundreds of other companies from all over the world for funding to allow us to continue our research and development and advance our design and I’m very proud that a company from Orkney that started in my parents’ garage with a simple idea has been able to get to this stage of development.

“It has been no easy journey as all of our staff will tell you and it is a great credit to them all as few people have the courage, dedication and ability to innovate in order to make a real difference. We still have a long and challenging road ahead of us but well done to everyone involved in the Company this is a great milestone and I hope for Orkney, in terms of job creation and economic development, that marine renewables is a success in the future”.
In order for the project to succeed, the team at Scotrenewables has stressed the importance of a staged development plan.

Trevor Walls, Lead Electrical Engineer explains: “We felt that moving from a 1/5th scale model straight to a 1MW full-scale prototype was too big a leap. In order to maximise our chances of success, we have opted to move forward in the first instance with a 250kW
full-scale prototype.

The SR250 will weigh around 80 tonnes and will measure around 30m in length with twin 8m diameter rotors, giving our system a very competitive power to weight ratio.

Harland and Wolff Manufacturing Manager Trevor McCormick says: “We are delighted to be involved in this project. We have a strong track record in the marine renewables sector and understand the importance of this prototype and the trust that Scotrenewables are placing in us. We look forward to working with them and seeing the prototype prove itself.

For more details or enquires please contact:

Harland and Wolff Heavy Industries Limited
David McVeigh
Sales Manager
Email davidmc@harland-wolff.com
Phone +44(0)2890 534389

JPR NI
Joris Minne
Email  joris.minne@jprni.com
Phone +44(0) 7876 218978