Atlantis Resources has generated first power from the 398MW MeyGen tidal power project site in the Pentland Firth, Scotland.
The project started exporting the electricity for the first time after the installation of a turbine supplied by Andritz Hydro Hammerfest (AHH) was completed and plugged into the pre-laid cable.
The turbine is the first of four 1.5MW tidal stream turbines to become operational at the site for the first 6MW phase.
Using the Olympic Ares, James Fisher Marine Services completed both the turbine and cable installation works at the site.
Atlantis CEO Tim Cornelius said: “The success of this first phase is a foundation for the tidal industry to build upon to ensure we develop a new energy sector which can deliver clean, predictable and affordable power from the UK’s own abundant resources.
“When it comes to energy, we think consumers should be asking for the moon, and we know how to harness it.”
Construction of for the next 6MW phase is scheduled to begin next year.
The turbine installation followed the completion of installation of four turbine foundations, which were carried out by using the Neptune jack up vessel owned by Geosea.
The project is being developed in two phases in the Inner Sound of the Pentland Firth, between mainland Scotland and Orkney.
In June, Atlantis connected the MeyGen tidal stream energy project to the 33kV Ness of Quoys distribution network in Scotland.
The project is also planned to be connected with high voltage transmission network, which is managed by Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission (SHETL).