All FERN News

Black Rock Tidal Power is studying the turbulance in the Bay of Fundy’s Minas Passage.

Black Rock, in conjunction with the Department of Oceanography at Dalhousie University and Rockland Scientific International of Victoria, B.C., wants to measure the turbulence in the water where the company plans to deploy a tidal power renewable energy platform next year.

The deployment in Minas Passage is part of a larger international research project, InSTREAM, being conducted in conjunction with three United Kingdom partners FloWave Ocean Energy Research Facility, Ocean Array Systems and The European Marine Energy Centre and funded through the Offshore Energy Research Association and Innovate UK.

The objective of the InSTREAM project is to measure ocean turbulence that affects loads on turbine components and structure and that, in turn, affects the reliability and efficiency of tidal energy extraction.

Netherland based tidal energy company Tocardo will start testing four 250kW T2 bi-directional turbines in the Minas Passage of Canada’s Bay of Fundy in late 2017.

The company will carry out in-water testing of the turbines at the Fundy Ocean Resource Centre for Energy (FORCE) in the Minas Passage.

Tocardo president Hans Van Breugel said: “We are looking forward to demonstrating Tocardo’s capabilities in North America and hope to make Nova Scotia the centre of our future manufacturing operations.”

After a 27-day sea trial, a team comprised of staff at the Fundy Ocean Research Center for Energy (FORCE) working in concert with crew on the Dominion Victory have successfully recovered an underwater monitoring platform, known as FAST-1.
 
“To explore the energy potential in the Bay of Fundy responsibly, we have to understand it,” said FORCE general manager Tony Wright. “We’re building a series of subsea instrument platforms that will give us a clearer picture of what’s happening at the FORCE test site.”
 
The platform was retrieved in mid-July, and analysis of sensor data is now underway. Reliable site data is critical to all aspects of in-stream tidal energy development, including both turbine design and understanding any effects on the marine ecosystem.

Cape Sharp Tidal Ventures was preparing Friday to move their first 1,000-tonne turbine from Halifax to Saint John.

Earlier this month, one of the fastening components that was imported was identified by the platform’s developer OpenHydro as having a flaw and in need of replacement.

It’s not considered a major part of the platform, but the components are used to secure part of the turbine generator in position, and could fail prematurely if not replaced, said a statement on the company’s website.

The Scotia Tide barge and turbine is expected to take 6 days, said a statement on the company’s website.

Following all-day meetings in Halifax on Tuesday, the Atlantic provinces have agreed to work together in the ongoing battle against climate change.

Federal Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Catherine McKenna, and the four Atlantic ministers issued a joint statement Tuesday evening committing to “ accelerate the transition to a clean electricity future in Atlantic Canada and to enhance the region’s capacity to plan for and manage climate risks.”