Underwater turbine spinning for 6 years off Scotland's coast is a breakthrough for tidal energy
Keeping a large, or grid-scale, turbine in place in the harsh sea environment that long is a record that helps pave the way for bigger tidal energy farms and makes it far more appealing to investors, according to the trade association Ocean Energy Europe. Tidal energy projects would be prohibitively expensive if the turbines had to be taken out of the water for maintenance every couple of years.
Tidal energy technologies are still in the early days of their commercial development, but their potential for generating clean energy is big. According to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, marine energy, a term researchers use to refer to power generated from tides, currents, waves or temperature changes, is the world's largest untapped renewable energy resource.
The MeyGen tidal energy project off the coast of Scotland has four turbines producing 1.5 megawatts each, enough electricity collectively to power up to 7,000 homes annually. On Thursday, the Swedish company SKF announced that its bearings and seals on one of the turbines had passed the 6 1/2-year mark without needing unplanned or disruptive maintenance. It has been working closely with the industry for a decade on design and testing.
Achieving six years in the water with constant operations is a 'very significant milestone' that bodes well for the future of tidal energy, said Rémi Gruet, chief executive of Ocean Energy Europe.
Scotland and the United Kingdom are global leaders in tidal energy. The MeyGen site, operated by SAE Renewables, has been sending electricity to the grid for about eight years.
There are very few tidal energy projects generating electricity continuously. Most have been tests and demonstrations, said Andrea Copping, an expert in marine renewable energy development. Copping said there are still large hurdles to overcome before tidal energy can be adopted more widely, such as dealing with regulatory issues, potential environmental effects and conflicts with other ocean users.
Still, the Scotland project seems to have addressed the question of whether the turbines can last in seawater, added Copping, a distinguished faculty fellow in the School of Marine and Environmental Affairs at the University of Washington.
'I think they have checked the boxes,' she said. 'Because skeptics, and that includes investors of course and governments, said, 'How on earth are you going to operate these things especially for any length of time in this very tough environment?' And that's what I think they proved.'
It's very hard to take what is essentially a wind turbine normally found on land and put it under water, said Fraser Johnson, operations and maintenance manager at MeyGen. The record-setting turbine should keep going for at least another year before it needs to come out of the water for maintenance, he added.
The four turbines are in the Inner Sound of the Pentland Firth, a narrow channel between the Scottish mainland and Stroma Island known for strong tidal currents. Tidal energy systems need strong currents to make electricity efficiently. MeyGen plans to add 20 turbines in 2030 to produce more electricity, after needed upgrades to the electricity grid are finished. The site could eventually hold as many as 130 turbines that are more powerful than those at the site today.
The MeyGen site is in the open water, while another type of tidal project involves creating a dam-like structure called a barrage across tidal waters. With four turbines, MeyGen is considered the largest tidal energy project of its kind worldwide, Johnson said.
'It's a title we wish we didn't have. We want more, we want others,' he said. 'Unfortunately others are having difficulty achieving what MeyGen has achieved. But working with SKF moving forward, we'll push the industry forward.'
McDermott writes for the Associated Press.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Boston Globe
4 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Amid calls for Powell's ouster, Bessent says Fed chief should serve out his term
Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up ENERGY Advertisement Ontario premier threatens electricity export tax if US trade war continues Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he hasn't ruled out the idea of reimposing a surcharge on electricity exports to US states if trade talks between Canada and the Trump administration don't result in a fair deal. In March, the leader of Canada's most populous province briefly put a 25 percent tax on power exports to Michigan, Minnesota, and New York in retaliation for US President Donald Trump's trade war. He backed down after the president said he would increase tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum to 50 percent and attack the country's auto industry, which relies on exports to the United States. Trump eventually did increase steel and aluminum levies to 50 percent — though not just on Canada. Then, on July 10, Trump threatened to increase tariffs on some other Canadian products to 35 percent if there's no trade agreement between the two nations by the beginning of next month. 'On the export tax on electricity, everything's on the table — and we'll see how this deal goes and we'll see what he has to say on Aug. 1,' Ford told reporters Tuesday. — BLOOMBERG NEWS Advertisement BILLIONAIRES SpaceX warns investors that Musk could yet return to politics There's a new warning tucked into the tender offer for Elon Musk's SpaceX: The billionaire may not be done with politics just yet. Musk previously served as senior adviser to President Trump 'in connection with the Department of Government Efficiency and may in the future serve in similar roles and devote significant time and energy to such roles,' according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg and people familiar with the content who were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. The company added the language laying out such 'risk factors' in paperwork sent to investors discussing the transaction. It was the first time this language is believed to have appeared in these tender offers, some of these people said. SpaceX's most recent offer values the rocket and satellite maker at about $400 billion, which would make it the most valuable private company in the world. Representatives for Musk and SpaceX didn't respond to requests for comment. — BLOOMBERG NEWS Advertisement LIFE SCIENCES AstraZeneca says it will invest $50B in US drugmaking facilities British-Swedish drugmaker AstraZeneca has promised to invest $50 billion in the United States by 2030, the latest in a string of pledges by pharmaceutical companies as they try to fend off President Trump's threat to impose a 200 percent tariff on imported drugs. Pascal Soriot, CEO of AstraZeneca, announced the plans Monday in Washington while seated next to Kevin Hassett, the director of the US National Economic Council, and Glenn Youngkin, the governor of Virginia, where the company will direct a major plank of the investment. The plan 'underpins our belief in America's innovation in biopharmaceuticals and our commitment to the millions of patients who need our medicines in America and globally,' Soriot said. The investment will go to projects like building a manufacturing plant in Virginia to make drug substances, including for the company's weight loss drugs. The plant in Virginia will be AstraZeneca's largest single manufacturing investment in its 26-year history, the company said. The money will also go toward plants in California, Indiana, Maryland, and Texas, as well as expanding research and development facilities in Maryland and Massachusetts. — NEW YORK TIMES MEDIA Appeals court backs Trump's ban of AP from White House press pool A federal appeals court will allow President Trump to continue to block news outlets from covering him in 'restricted' spaces such as the Oval Office and Air Force One based on their editorial decisions. In a one-page order on Tuesday, the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit left in place an earlier decision that let White House officials exclude the Associated Press from a rotating pool of reporters and photographers who cover the president's daily movements while an underlying legal fight goes forward. The latest decision from the Washington-based court, which has a majority of active judges appointed by Democratic presidents, is a win, for now, for Trump and senior aides who have sought to exert more control over the media organizations that have access to him. The AP could ask the US Supreme Court to step in. None of the DC Circuit's 11 active judges noted a dissent from Tuesday's order siding with the government at this stage, suggesting AP would face steep odds of success before the conservative-majority high court. 'We are disappointed by today's procedural decision but remain focused on the strong district court opinion in support of free speech as we have our case heard,' AP spokesperson Lauren Easton said in a statement. 'The press and the public have a fundamental right to speak freely without government retaliation. We look forward to continuing to produce strong, factual and nonpartisan coverage of the administration.' A White House spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. — BLOOMBERG NEWS Advertisement CANDY Not so sweet news as Hershey plans double-digit price hike Hershey Co. is raising prices on its candy due to historically high cocoa costs. The Pennsylvania-based maker of Hershey's chocolates and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups told its retailers last week that it would be implementing a roughly double-digit price increase, company officials said Tuesday. That increase reflects a higher list price as well as adjustments to the weight and number of candies in a bag, a practice known as shrinkflation. 'This change is not related to tariffs or trade policies,' Andrew Archambault, president of US confection at Hershey, said in a statement. 'It reflects the reality of rising ingredient costs including the unprecedented cost of cocoa.' The company previously announced a price increase a year ago. The price of cocoa has surged in the last two years, due to supply shortages in the wake of disease and poor weather in Ivory Coast and Ghana, which usually account for more than 60 percent of global supplies. Cocoa futures have more than doubled and touched a record in December, upending the chocolate industry. Cocoa futures prices have since cooled as global production improves and demand slumps, but costs remain high above historical levels. Swiss chocolatier Lindt & Spruengli AG pushed through a 15.8 percent price increase in the first half of the year and its chief executive said he expects cocoa inflation to continue into next year. — BLOOMBERG NEWS Advertisement
The Hill
8 hours ago
- The Hill
AstraZeneca investing $50B in US, Trump calls it an ‘honor'
British-Swedish pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca announced a $50 billion investment in the U.S. this week, with the Trump administration claiming some credit due to its tariff policy and President Trump calling it an 'honor.' The company announced the investment on Monday, saying it would invest $50 billion into the country by 2030 to build on 'America's global leadership in medicines manufacturing and R&D.' The investment includes a 'drug substance facility' in Virginia, which AstraZeneca says will be its largest single manufacturing investment in the world. Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) thanked AstraZeneca for its investment and the jobs that it's expected to generate. 'Advanced manufacturing is at the heart of Virginia's dynamic economy, so I am thrilled that AstraZeneca, one of the world's leading pharmaceutical companies, plans to make their largest global manufacturing investment here in the Commonwealth,' Youngkin said. Additional funds will go towards the company's existing or planned facilities in California, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts and Texas. AstraZeneca estimated these investments will help it reach a total revenue of $80 billion by 2030. 'For decades Americans have been reliant on foreign supply of key pharmaceutical products. President Trump and our nation's new tariff policies are focused on ending this structural weakness,' Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said in a statement. 'We are proud that AstraZeneca has made the decision to bring substantial pharmaceutical production to our shores. This historic investment is bringing tens of thousands of jobs to the US and will ensure medicine sold in our country is produced right here.' Trump noted the investment at the start of a meeting with Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday. 'We have a big announcement, AstraZeneca, the big drug company, is going to spend $50 billion — just announced — $50 billion in the United States in order to build various places all over the country big manufacturing plants, pharmaceutical plants all over the country,' Trump said. 'So, that's an honor. And you said they did that because of the election and because of the fact the tariffs are in place. So they are building their facilities in New York. 50 billion, that's a big investment. It's going to be a very good investment. I have no doubt about it. So, thank you so AstraZeneca.' It wasn't immediately clear what New York investment Trump was referring to. AstraZeneca currently has an office located in New York.
CNBC
9 hours ago
- CNBC
Trump China tariff deadline likely to be extended, Bessent says
Key Points Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. is likely to hash out an extension of President Donald Trump's upcoming trade deadline with China. Bessent said he will be meeting with his Chinese counterparts in Stockholm, Sweden, next week. The two sides in mid-May agreed to a 90-day suspension of most of the heavy tariffs on each others' goods while they continued trade negotiations. The U.S. wants to discuss "the sanctioned Russian and Iranian oil that they're buying there, and what they're doing to aid Russia and a Ukraine war," Bessent said. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Tuesday said he is likely to hash out an extension of President Donald Trump 's upcoming trade deadline with China when he meets with his Chinese counterparts in Stockholm, Sweden, next week. The two sides in mid-May agreed to a 90-day suspension of most of the heavy tariffs on each others' goods while they continued trade negotiations. That suspension is set to expire on Aug. 12. But "we'll be working out what is likely an extension" during talks in Stockholm on Monday and Tuesday, Bessent said in a Fox Business interview. "I think trade is in a very good place with China," he said. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson later Tuesday morning confirmed that his country would host the latest round of talks between Washington and Beijing. "It is positive that both countries wish to meet in Sweden to seek mutual understanding," Kristersson said on X in a translated post. "The talks primarily concern the relationship between the USA and China, but they also have significant importance for global trade and the economy. Safeguarding rules-based international trade and Sweden's economic interests in a complex global environment is one of the government's top priorities," he said. Bessent said on Fox Business that he hoped the talks would touch on other areas of potential agreement, including getting Beijing to slow the "glut of manufacturing that they're doing and concentrate on building a consumer economy." The U.S. also wants to discuss "the sanctioned Russian and Iranian oil that they're buying there, and what they're doing to aid Russia" in its ongoing invasion of Ukraine. "So I think we've actually moved to a new level with China, where it's very constructive," he said. "We're going to be able to get a lot of things done, now that trade has kind of settled in at a good level." That apparent progress follows multiple rounds of discussions that saw the U.S. and China pull back on embargo-level tariffs that threatened to upend two of the world's top trading partners. Trump in April had ratcheted up tariffs on Chinese goods to an effective 145% blanket rate, as Beijing became the top target of the new U.S. administration's efforts to reframe the global trade landscape by wielding import duties against its economic partners. China had retaliated with 125% tariffs on U.S. imports. The two sides agreed to lower their respective tariff rates by 115% after an initial round of talks in Geneva, Switzerland, in May. In a subsequent meeting in London in late June, trade officials from Washington and Beijing affirmed their preliminary agreement.
