Tocardo installs floating tidal device at EMEC

Dutch tidal energy developer Tocardo Tidal Power has completed the installation of its floating tidal platform at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC).

The floating tidal device is currently moored and connected via subsea cables to the substation at EMEC’s Fall of Warness grid-connected tidal test site in Orkney, Leask Marine informed.

The Orkney-based marine outfit Leask Marine provided its C-Odyssey and Uskmoor vessels for the operation that lasted throughout this month.

The device will remain onsite producing power until October 31, 2017, Leask Marine said in a notice to mariners.

Tocardo’s EMEC installation is part of the InToTidal project, supported by European Commission’s funding program Horizon 2020 with €2 million in June 2016.

The platform was first deployed off Texel island in the Netherlands in 2015. It was originally equipped with Tocardo’s T1 turbine that had the capacity of 100kW, which was later replaced by T2 turbine, doubling its capacity.

The system arrived to Orkney this February, marking the start of Tocardo’s 20-year commercial demonstration project at EMEC.