The ETI will test its second phase of the tidal energy converter project will support a further two turbines at the site of the Meygen project, set to be the largest marine energy project in the world.
The ETI’s director of programme delivery Jonathan Wills said: “In phase two we intend to demonstrate the most impactful of the innovations at a real site. The project should further enhance industry and investor confidence in tidal energy and help to unlock its potential as a serious contributor to future energy systems.”
Atlantis chief executive Tim Cornelius added: “The ETI funded technologies to be designed and built as part of this project have the potential to substantially reduce the cost of energy of installed commercial turbines – improving the economics of tidal energy as part of the UK’s energy mix.”
The funding arrangement follows news late last week that the UK government has offered £10 million in funding to the Meygen tidal array project in Scotland.
The funding will be drawn from the Marine Energy Array Demonstrator (MEAD) scheme, which is part of a £185 million funding pot that the UK government intends to invest in low-carbon technologies.
Other funders of the £51 million tidal project include the Scottish government and The Crown Estate.