October 9, 2018

Swedish developer Minesto has achieved initial electricity generation with its first commercial-scale marine energy kite during the commissioning program of its Deep Green low-flow tidal energy project in Wales.

The first 500kW utility-scale system of Minesto’s patented Deep Green technology has been commissioned at the Holyhead Deep site off the coast of North Wales, according to Minesto.

The company also said it entered the second commissioning phase and achieved initial electricity generation from the kite.

Martin Edlund, Minesto’s CEO, said: “This is the first step towards full power production. Our focus now is on enhancements of the power production capacity as we progress with our Holyhead Deep tidal site and other establishments. We are entering a new era of renewable energy generation and Minesto is at the forefront.

“The achievements in Wales over the last few months makes us confident that our unique technology can operate in low-flow tidal streams and ocean currents, offering predictability and reliability to the energy mix.”

Commenting on the offshore activities in Wales, David Collier, Minesto’s COO, said: “At this stage it’s all about demonstrating that the technology works as planned. What’s most pleasing with the commissioning of this first device at a larger scale is that we have shown that we have safe and efficient procedures for handling the system and that it performs as it was designed to do.”

The DG500 commissioning program consisted of two main phases. The first involved performing system functionality tests, before moving on to electricity generation, according to Minesto.