Siemens Dives into Tidal Energy Market

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland) -- German engineering giant, Siemens AG (NYSE:SI) (Munich, Germany) is plunging headfirst into the developing marine energy sector by announcing plans to buyout leading tidal turbine manufacturer, Marine Current Turbines (MCT) (Bristol, England).

MCT has been a pioneer in the tidal energy sector with its SeaGen turbine. The company designed and installed the world's first commercial-scale offshore tidal stream energy system in Northern Ireland's Strangford Lough, where a 1.2-megawatt (MW) SeaGen turbine has been supplying electricity to the U.K. grid since April 2008. Since then the turbine has delivered more than 3-gigawatt hours (GWh) of electricity. Siemens upped its stake in MCT to 45% last year but believes now is the right time to step up its activity in this new, renewable energy sector. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed but it expects to complete the acquisition in the coming weeks.

"The acquisition of Marine Current Turbines is an important step forward for the Solar & Hydro Division," said Ted Scheidegger, CEO of the Solar & Hydro Division of Siemens Energy. "We will continue to drive the commercialization of this promising technology which harvest energy from highly predictable tidal streams. Our target is to secure a leading position in this future business."

MCT has been active Ireland, England, Wales and Scotland in recent years and has numerous, large tidal projects planned. There is also a growing degree of support from the U.K. government with an increase in its subsidy -- Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROCs) - for marine energy projects from two up to five. This equates to almost 273 ($361) per megawatt hour of electricity from next year. The U.K. government believes that tidal and marine energy could supply up to 20% of its electricity demand in the future.

MCT is currently working with RWE npower renewables (Swindon, England), a subsidiary of German energy company RWE AG (OTC:RWEOY) (Essen, Germany), on a tidal energy project off the west coast of Wales. The Skerries Tidal Stream Array will feature nine SeaGen turbines and will generate enough power to supply electricity to around 10,000 homes. For additional information, see August 26, 2010, article - Tidal Energy Project Revealed for Welsh Waters.

It is also aiming to construct tidal turbines in the fast-flowing Kyle Rhea straits between the Isle of Skye and the Scottish mainland. The turbines will be capable of generating a total of 5 MW of electricity, enough to power 4,000 homes. For additional information, see December 14, 2010, article - MCT Plans Tidal Energy Farm for Scotland.

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