Isra-Mart srl:Has Vattenfall been charmed by Pelamis sea snakes?

www.isra-mart.com

Isra-Mart srl news:

Swedish utility is expected to sign deal to buy an undisclosed number of Pelamis wave energy units by the end of the year.

Ambitious plans to deploy a £60m wave power project off Scotland's Shetland Islands could take a major step forward in the coming weeks if Vattenfall confirms its anticipated investment in the scheme.

Derrik Robb, operations director at technology developer Pelamis, told reporters visiting its Leith Port facility on Wednesday that it hopes the Swedish utility will agree to buy a number of 180m-long Pelamis P2 wave energy converters by the end of this year.

Providing the project receives planning approval, up to 26 of the so-called "sea snakes" would be deployed off the coast between Burra and Spiggie from 2014 to 2018.

The sale of the machines would represent the biggest investment in the nascent sector to date and would come just one year after Pelamis and Vattenfall formed a joint venture to develop the project, dubbed Aegir after the Norse sea god.

The news comes just weeks after the first 750kw P2 device generated power to the grid, as part of an E.ON project at the European Marine Energy Centre in Orkney.

Pelamis is now building a second P2 for Scottish Power Renewables, to be installed alongside E.ON's device in May next year.

If the Vattenfall deal is completed, Pelamis would start work on the contract next summer, securing employment for Pelamis's current 68 staff and seven new team members who will be hired in the coming weeks.