Isra-Mart srl : Nautricity hopes to harness power of Thames's tides

www.isra-mart.com

Isra-Mart news:

Plans to line London's River Thames with tidal turbines have come a step closer to reality after the companies behind the scheme announced that they will soon install a demonstration device on Victoria Embankment.

Strathclyde University spin out Nautricity has today been confirmed as the technology supplier for Energy Invest Group's up-to 50MW Thames Tidal project, which could potentially generate enough electricity to power 35,000 homes by 2015.

The two companies have formed a joint venture, dubbed Thames Tidal Ltd, to complete a pilot project.

Nautricity plans to install one of its 250kW or 500kW CoRMaT devices alongside HQS Wellington, moored at Temple Steps, within the next two months. Energy Invest has already started building a £20,000 jetty by the ship to enable installation and act as a viewing platform for anyone who wants to take a closer look.

CoRMaT is a small, free-floating capsule tethered to a surface float which can be deployed in depths of up to 500 metres. It uses a contra-rotating rotor system, which is designed to ensure the turbine remains steady in the face of strong tidal flows, potentially avoiding stresses which can damage single rotor devices.

Nautricity CoRMaT tidal energy device in the waterA spokesman from Energy Invest told BusinessGreen that CoRMaT had been selected for its diminutive size, which makes it more suited to the Thames than some of the larger first-generation devices which can be difficult to deploy.

The contra-rotating turbine is also hoped to avoid scouring of the river bed and banks.

However, while optimistic about the technology, the spokesman admitted that the trial could fail if the river is too polluted with debris which could break the blades.

The test project is designed to allow stakeholders, including the Port of London Authority, to understand how the device works and to kick start a discussion for the extensive planning process.

If the trial is successful, Thames Tidal hopes to install hundreds of tidal turbines, the largest capable of generating up to 500kw, along the river from Westminster to Margate. The spokesman said that this could happen in the next four to five years depending on planning constraints.

"We will have to do a lot of due diligence and environmental impact assessments, but if we can provide them we can get the array to work," he said.