The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Milestone year for tidal power firm ends in loss
Firm behind MeyGen array confident despite negative outcome
A leading Scottish tidal power firm has hailed last year as a milestone year in its development, despite posting a multimillion-pound annual loss .
Atlantis Resources chief executive Tim Cornelius said producing power from the MeyGen array in the Pentland Firth for the first time was a landmark moment for the company on its journey to fully commercialise tidal-stream power.
MeyGen Phase 1A consists of four 1.5MW capacity turbines and it exported its first power back to the National Grid in November.
The development is the culmination of more than a decade of planning, research and development work and Atlantis is now turning its focus to building out the wider array.
“Last year was a very significant year for the group as we saw the realisation of over 10 years of hard work in the energisation of MeyGen Phase 1A,” said Mr Cornelius.
“At the start of 2017 we were delighted to get confirmation from Ofgem that MeyGen Phase 1A has received full accreditation as a tidal generation plant, ensuring it receives five Renewables Obligation Certificates for each megawatt hour of generation.”
The financial results show Atlantis made a £7.26m loss in the year to December 31, a significant turnaround from the £2m profit of a year earlier.
Revenues also fell from £1.37m to £235,000 in the year, although Atlantis said the 2015 figures included one-off gains stemming from the acquisition of Marine Current Turbines of £9.2m and £900,000 from the sale of 50% of its stake in Atlantis Operations Canada.
Mr Cornelius said the company had also moved to extend its reach.
“Whilst tidal stream remains our primary focus, we recently announced the creation of a new division, Atlantis Energy, as part of our diversification strategy,” he said.
“This division has had a busy start, signing agreements with partners on offshore floating wind, and tidal barrage projects. This year promises to be a year of technological and geographical diversity and advancement as we continue to build this part of the business alongside our latest tidal stream opportunities in France and Asia.”