Sabella has started a new test and production campaign for its D10 tidal turbine, connected to the Ushant island electricity grid in France.
Improvements made to the turbine over the past few months, in particular modification of the export connections and smoothing of the electrical production on land, according to a release. This smoothing function, developed in partnership with the Syndicat d’Energie et d’Equipement du Finistère (SDEF) and ENTECH, within the framework of the European Interreg ICE project (led by Bretagne Développement Innovation), had never been tested in situ before.
The electrical production of a tidal turbine generates brief disturbances of the signal induced by natural swell movements or current turbulence, particularly present in the Fromveur Passage, which must be regulated to be able, in the future, to rapidly deploy marine technologies on a large scale. The smoothing function will greatly improve the quality of the electricity injected into the island’s grid and thus ensure stable operations for the operator ENEDIS, Sabella said.
Electricity from the D10 turbine delivered to the island’s grid will gradually increase over the coming weeks in coordination with ENEDIS, from 100 kW to the maximum injection capacity allowed by the grid. In addition, the tidal turbine will supply energy to the Ilophone 2022, festival which takes place next September in Ushant.
“This campaign also aims to prepare the PHARES project, which consists of providing the island with a renewable energy package, including two 500 kW Sabella tidal turbines, in order to make it more autonomous in green electricity,” said Thomas Archinard, project manager at Sabella. “More specifically, we will focus on better understanding the site’s environment with a view to the deployment of future commercial farms.”
Sabella designs and develops systems to supply electricity to coastal areas and produce green hydrogen from tidal energy. In 2010, Sabella won the ADEME’s AMI Renewable Marine Energy Demonstrators project and was supported by the Investissements d’Avenir, the Brittany Region’s FEDER and local authorities to launch the first full-scale tidal turbine connected to the grid, D10, in 2015.
