TIGER secures consent for two turbines at Morbihan site

Interreg-funded TIGER project has secured consent for two new experimental turbines to be installed in the Gulf de Morbihan.

TIGER is a game-changing project for the European tidal stream energy sector, driving collaboration and cost reduction through tidal turbine installations in the UK and France.

 The two D08-250 type tidal turbines, with a power capacity of 250kW, will be installed for 3 years providing a crucial opportunity to test the technology.

 The test site will also allow the project to carry out environmental monitoring and identify ways to reduce costs while exploiting local carbon-free energy.

 The immersion site of the tidal turbines is situated in the channel between the Pointe du Monteno and the Ile Longue, which is characterised by the presence of very strong currents favourable to experimentation of tidal technology.

The work will be carried out in five stages:

-       Road works and laying of ground ducts

-       Installation of the ducts at sea

-       Pulling the cables at sea

-       Installation of the tidal turbines

-       Pulling the cables to ground and installing the delivery paste

Turbine construction and deployment will take place toward the end of this year or early 2024.

TIGER is led by the UK’s Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult, and comprises 18 partners from across the UK and France spanning turbine developers, ocean energy demonstration sites, research organisations, as well local and regional authorities.

The Morbihan site is owned by Morbihan Hydro Energies (MHE), a joint venture between SA SABELLA and SEM 56 Energies. The Universite de Bretagne Sud is also part of the project and supports MHE in the development of the Morbihan site having carried out numerous environmental studies in the Gulf de Morbihan.

Teo van der Kammen, Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult’s Technical Manager, said: “This is fantastic news for the tidal stream industry and a result of several years of technology and project development work, engagement with local stakeholders and collaboration between MHE56 and TIGER Partners. The Morbihan site will demonstrate the game changing technology innovations developed in TIGER for the Sabella tidal turbine technology and help reduce the cost of tidal stream energy.”

Fanch Le Bris, Sabella CEO, said “We are very pleased with the prefect's decision, which attests, on the one hand, to the compliance of our project with the regulations and, on the other hand, demonstrates the State's support for the development of marine renewable energy. This is a very positive signal ahead of the drafting of the new strategic law for energy in France. This 3-year experiment allows us to significantly improve the performance of the Sabella technology”

 TIGER is a €48.4m project funded by the Interreg France (Channel) England programme. It is the largest ever project to be approved by any Interreg programme.