French power-generation and transport firm Alstom is upping its grip on the marine energy market by taking over Tidal Generation Limited (TGL) off British engineering icon Rolls-Royce.
The deal, expected to complete in months, comes just over a year after Alstom took a 40% stake in Inverness-based wave energy firm AWS Ocean Energy.
Alstom is also a joint venture partner with SSE Renewables in the proposed Costa Head wave project, off mainland Orkney, which plans to use AWS wave devices.
TGL, a wholly owned subsidiary of Rolls-Royce employing 20 people in Bristol, specialises in the design and manufacture of tidal stream turbines.
TGL’s first 500kilowatt unit was installed at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) at Orkney in Scotland, generating power to the grid for an average of more than 12 hours a day.
Its latest 1megawatt tidal turbine is due to be installed at EMEC by the end of 2012 and will be tested in various operational conditions off Orkney over a two year period, said Alstom.
Full-scale testing on AWS’ units for the Costa Head project is planned to start at EMEC in Orkney in 2014.
Steve Burgin, president of Alstom UK, said: “This is a tremendous development for Alstom because it puts us in a real leadership position across not just tidal power or renewables but clearly demonstrates our commitment to lower carbon power in the UK as a whole.
“With today’s acquisition, we’ve got an incredibly exciting opportunity to take a technology that’s right at the start of its deployment to commercial scale in the future.
“As a group we can now offer lower carbon solutions to meet all needs – from gas-fired power stations to a whole range of renewables, from offshore wind to marine to biomass – that not only help reduce emissions but also keep the UK’s power flowing.”
