French tidal energy company Sabella has completed the optimization works on its 1MW tidal energy turbine which stands ready in the Port of Brest for this month’s deployment off Ushant island.
The turbine has been ready for deployment back to Fromveur Passage – where it was installed for the first time in 2015 – since early September 2018, according to Jean-Christophe Allo , Business Development Manager for Sabella.
Sabella’s D10 turbine is 17 meters tall, with a 10-meter rotor and weight of around 400 tons.
During its 2015-2016 deployment off Ushant island, the turbine successfully fed clean electricity to the French national power grid, and is planned to do the same during the upcoming demonstration.
“We finally secured a vessel that will manage this operation that will include the installation of the turbine on its frame, and connection to the export cable, during October’s neap tides – subject to weather forecasts. The turbine will then be fully monitored and the electricity produced supplied to Ushant grid,” Allo confirmed.
The maintenance works on the D10 tidal turbine were conducted as part of the optimization process for the turbine ahead of its three-year deployment, for which Sabella secured the permit from French authorities.