Norwegian Ocean Power (NOP) has applied for a licence to Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE) to test tidal turbine in Gimsøystraumen, north of the Arctic Circle, Norway.
Norwegian-based tidal energy developer expects to receive the licence from NVE mid-March 2017 if the consultation phase goes according to plan.
Following the licence approval, NOP plans to begin with the trial period of their turbine technology late in 2017.
The company is considering applying for two more test locations in the same area.
“During a test period of maximum 4 years we will have collected enough data to make any necessary adjustments,” said Kjell Sæterhaug , Managing Director of NOP.
NOP has developed a tidal current turbine based on the Darrieus-turbine design with one moving part designed for mass production.
The moving part drives a variable speed direct drive generator. The size of the turbine is approximately 12 m by 6 m in diameter, and it can operate at depths from 15 m further.
The first commercial unit has the capacity of 350 kW and is expected to produce 1 GW/h of clean energy annually at suitable locations.
The company is working with several experts to optimize the design of the turbine and the generator, added Sæterhaug.
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