Engineering news
Marine energy firm Atlantis has selected Lockheed Martin as principal contractor to deliver its turbine to the MeyGen tidal power project off the coast of Scotland.
The deal follows initial collaboration on design optimisation of the 1.5MW AR1500 tidal turbine. Construction on the 398MW MeyGen project in waters off of Caithness has already begun, with horizontal drilling operations taking place.
MeyGen project is the largest planned tidal development project in the world at 398MW of total installed capacity when fully constructed. Situated in the Pentland Firth, Scotland, the MeyGen array will consist of 269 submerged tidal turbines.
Phase 1A, comprising four turbines, will have an optimised output of 6MW. Atlantis/Lockheed will supply one turbine, while Andritz Hydro Hammerfest will supply the remaining three.
The 18m rotor diameter AR1500 turbine, scheduled for delivery dockside in Scotland in 2016, will be one of the largest capacity single rotor turbines ever built. It will have an active rotor pitching system and full nacelle yawing capability to make the most of the turbulent waters through the Pentland Firth off the northern tip of Scotland.
The Lockheed Martin turbine construction contract scope includes the manufacture of the steel turbine housing, the assembly of all the turbine modules (including the gearbox and generator) and the systems integration and quality assurance of the overall turbine delivery programme. Lockheed and Atlantis are working with the supply chain in Scotland to maximise local content for the AR1500.
Tim Cornelius, chief executive of Atlantis, said: “This new multi-million pound contract with Lockheed Martin further develops the strong relationship that exists between the two companies who are at the forefront of tidal power generation. Lockheed Martin has been a strong partner and supporter of Atlantis for a number of years.”
Atlantis has also announce that contractors have commenced horizontal directional drilling operations at the MeyGen site in Caithness, to create the bores for the cables which will link the onshore site at Ness of Quoys with the four subsea turbines.
Each of the four bores will be approximately 550m long, and is designed to contain a 4.4kV cable through which tidally generated energy can be exported from the turbines to the onshore grid connection. The drilling is expected to take four months and will be carried out by Manchester-based O’Connor Utilities. Construction works have been under way at the onshore site since January to prepare the necessary infrastructure for the project.
MeyGen was one of the first tidal projects in the world to secure the necessary planning consent, lease agreement, grid connection and power purchase agreement in order to begin onshore and offshore construction. Construction of the first phase of the project is expected to take place throughout 2015 and 2016, with first power being delivered to the grid for sale in 2016.
The construction of the MeyGen tidal array will take place in stages, including:
Phase 1A: the first 6MW (four turbines): Enough to power approximately 3000 Scottish homes
Phase 1: the first 86MW (61 turbines in total): Enough to power approximately 42,000 Scottish homes
The complete 398 MW (269 turbines): Enough to power approximately 175,000 Scottish homes