Cape Sharp Tidal has temporarily halted the retrieval of tidal turbine from the Bay of Fundy until the next tidal cycle.
The 2MW OpenHydro turbine was successfully disconnected from the transmission cable at the Fundy Ocean Research Centre for Energy (FORCE) berth on April 21, 2017.
However, the turbine itself was not retrieved during this tidal window, Stacey Pineau, the acting spokesperson for Cape Sharp Tidal confirmed.
“We made a decision not to proceed with retrieval. This decision is based on operational timing and thorough planning, which ensures all activities are conducted in the safest manner possible. This means that turbine retrieval is not achievable during this tidal cycle,” Pineau said.
Cape Sharp Tidal, a joint venture between OpenHydro and Emera, plans to restart the retrieval operation in early May, during the next available tidal window.
The whole turbine system is being retrieved to make adjustments and upgrades to components in the OpenHydro turbine control center (TCC).
Pineau added the trials related to the retrieval are planned for the coming week.
To remind, Cape Sharp Tidal deployed the tidal turbine at FORCE in November 2016.