Cimpina and Mar Train Heavy Lift moved QED Naval’s Subhub out of the fabrication shed to a lay-down area within the Titanic Quarter on January 13, and the platform is now set to undergo final testing before being launched and towed to the Falls of Warness tidal test site for installation.
At a site within Titanic Quarter, QED Naval will complete the final stages of commissioning, including the fitting of the X-beam that supports three tidal turbines. The company said the lay-down site makes an ideal location for its operations as it allows for full systems testing, as well as for training staff in the installation and recovery procedures.
To move the Subhub platform, named Kraken, out of the fabrication shed where it built the main hull, Cimpina had removed part of the front of the fabrication shed with the help of local contractors. The rest of the moving work was completed by Mar Train Heavy Lift.
QED Naval stated that it had completed the initial outfit and furnishing of the internal ballast systems, made by UK-based supply chain companies, for all the hydraulic, pneumatic, electrical and control systems.
The project has employed over 200 people and contractors which demonstrates the wealth that can be injected into the UK economy if tidal energy was better supported by the UK government.” – QED Naval
This variant of the Subhub has been designed for Schottel SIT 250 turbines each rated at 70kW. After the final ballast testing, Subhub will be deployed at the Falls of Warness test site, operated by European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC). There, it will be put to trials to validate claims of the Subhub tidal platform, which include enhanced power output and site capacity factors, as well as cost reduction of the deployment and retrieval through a single marine operation.