Hydro & Marine News

Friday 24 October 2008

The Pentland Firth, which was opened up for commercial marine energy development last month, is expected to generate 700MW of power by 2020

Tidal power firm Atlantis Resources Corporation has today told New Energy Focus of plans to build a 150MW off-grid tidal-powered data centre in the Pentland Firth for its largest stakeholder, global investment bank Morgan Stanley, writes Rachel Johnson.

The £300m project is to include a series of shallow water and deep water tidal stream devices which would generate power solely for the data centre via a private, off-grid cable, funded by Morgan Stanley.

And, the firm hopes that the excess heat from the data centre could be used to heat greenhouses to grow local organic food in the Pentland Firth region.

The tidal power devices are to be installed in phases, the first of which is to be fully operational by 2011 and is expected to have a capacity of 20MW - enough to power the data centre in its initial stages. As the later phases of turbines are installed, the data centre is to be scaled up accordingly, until it has reached its maximum requirement of 150MW by 2013.

A spokesman for Singapore-registered Atlantis told New Energy Focus that, contrary to press reports, both the data centre and the tidal turbine are to both be built and owned by Atlantis, while Morgan Stanley is to operate the data centre.

He continued: "We have been working on this for some time now. We have been in talks with Highlands and Islands Enterprise and the Economic Development Agency for the region, and we are also conducting a feasibility study that will be complete in November."

"Skilled jobs"

The project is subject to planning consent, as well as approval from the Crown Estate and the Scottish Government.

Speaking today, Dr. James Mitchell, head of business development for Atlantis in London, said: "We estimate that ultimately our plans in the region would create at least 700 new jobs in association with the installation, operation and maintenance of the tidal current turbines. These skilled jobs would come at a crucial time, with employment set to steadily decline at the nearby Dounreay nuclear facility."

In addition, the company is considering plans to use surplus energy produced by the private cable to heat local vegetable plots.

Dr Mitchell said: "We are keen to use the excess heat from the data centre to warm greenhouses. The site under consideration is close to Prince Charles' Castle of Mey, so perhaps we can use renewable energy from the Pentland Firth to help grow local organic food under the Mey Selections range."

Morgan Stanley

Incorporated in Singapore in 2005, Atlantis Resources Corporation was founded in New South Wales, Australia, by Michael Perry whose Aquanator tidal current device underwater sails to harness the power of the sea.

The privately-owned company, whose largest stakeholder is Morgan Stanley, currently has its UK headquarters in the bank's Canary Wharf offices, but is looking to relocate in January 2009.

John Woodley, co-head of Morgan Stanley's European and Asian power, told a national newspaper this week that locating the data centre close to the power source was a fully calculated decision.

"If you bring industry to northern Scotland you overcome the electricity transmission constraints, while benefiting the environment," he said. "Given that data centres need to be built somewhere, it makes sense to place them as close as possible to renewable energy sources that are currently grid-constrained."

The Pentland Firth was opened up to tidal and wave developers by the Crown Estate last month (see this New Energy Focus story), making it the first marine zone in the UK to be earmarked for commercial tidal development. The area is expected to generate more than 700MW of marine energy by 2020.