Subsea 7 and Flumill have signed a letter of intent to collaborate on the development and design of marine tidal technology.
Flumill is an Arendal-based company in Norway that has developed a patented-concept based on rotating helixes for production of electric power from tidal water. The company has completed several scale tests of the concept, and the technology is said to have gained considerable international interest.
“Marine renewable energy is in an early development phase, but the ocean contains a significant energy potential, and Subsea 7 wants to be an active player in the further development. We have considered different technologies and came to the conclusion that Flumill with its composite-based screw concept has a great potential to succeed. We look forward to working with Flumill in the further development of this technology,” says Jan Arthur Grip Nilsen , engineering director NSC in Subsea 7.
Building and testing a full-scale prototype plant is technically demanding. Finding the right partner has therefore been essential for Flumill. “Cooperation with an international partner who has the necessary marine expertise and the resources to move the technology development into a commercial phase has been very important. Subsea 7 is in this way the perfect partner for us, and we are very pleased that Flumill and Subsea 7 have signed a letter of intent that sets the framework for a close cooperation,” says Anders Holm , managing director of Flumill AS.
The power from tidal water will drive the screwdrivers with two opposite rotating helixes. The turbines have lower end generators and they are attached to a foundation on the seabed. The buoyancy system allows the turbines to flow with the tide to an operating angle of between 25 and 60 degrees.