EU Grants $36 Million to French Tidal Energy Project

The European Union has granted $36 million USD (€31.3) to French company Normandie Hydroliennes for developing a tidal energy pilot project at Alderney Race, 3.4 km (2 miles) west of the Cotentin Peninsula in Normandy, on the French shore of the English Channel. Normandie Hydroliennes will install four 3MW turbines on the sea floor, which are expected to generate 34 GWh annually – enough to serve 15,000 people, according to the company’s announcement. The company describes the project, called NH1, as one of France’s “first commercial-scale tidal energy pilot projects.” It is expected to be operational by 2028.

The Alderney Race is the location of Europe’s strongest tidal stream. The race is known for its intermittent but powerful tidal current, which can run up to 12 knots (22 km/h or 14 mph) during some tidal cycles [Wikipedia]. The turbines will operate at least 38 meters (125 feet) below the surface to avoid visual impact and navigation hazards. The company says studies in other locations show that the turbines do not disturb marine life. The turbine array will transmit power to a shore station and the power grid through a single undersea cable.

The turbines will be manufactured by the UK-based Proteus Marine Renewables. The horizontal axis units have three-blade composite rotors 24 meters (79 feet) in diameter with a pitch control system for adapting to power and speed changes and protecting the system in storm conditions. The turbines are currently under construction in the French town of Cherbourg, about 30km (19 miles) east of the installation site.

Concept drawing of turbines in place on sea floor. (Courtesy of Normandie Hydroliennes. Click to enlarge.)

Approximate NH1 project location at Alderney Race. (Google Maps.)

Long Island Tide Mill Owner Gets Preservation Award

Anthony Martignetti, owner of the Mattituck Creek Tide Mill in Southold, N.Y., on the north shore of Long Island, recently received a preservation award for project excellence from Preservation Long Island, a regional non-profit for protecting and celebrating historic places.

The mill building dates from the early 1820s and operated as a tide-powered grist mill until 1902, when it was converted to a restaurant and tavern. It continued under several owners and Martignetti purchased it in 2018. Since then, he has been working to restore and renovate the structure. According to Preservation Long Island, “the mill remains a rare example of this engineering type, retaining its characteristic timber framing, form, and placement over water.”

Martignetti, a New York City restaurant owner, says the mill will open as a restaurant this coming spring. For more about the project and other preservation awards, visit the Preservation Long Island website. The Tide Mill Institute’s database also contains a paper describing the mill.

Anthony Martignetti in front of the Mattituck Creek Tide Mill during restoration and renovation. (Photo courtesy of Preservation Long Island.)

Nov 13 Talk: How a Novel Water Wheel Harnessed Tidal Flow in the 1890s

A November 13 online talk will reveal details of a novel water wheel that harnessed tidal power 130 years ago in Maine. The wheel, resembling a huge windmill fan, powered a grist mill and fertilizer factory in the little village of Bowdoinham in the late 1800s. This 27-foot-diameter wooden wheel designed by J. M. Kendall was submerged in the tidal Cathance River and drew energy from tidal flow, similar to the way tidal stream generators work today. The associated power train used reversible gearing to operate on both incoming and outgoing tides, producing useable power up to 18 hours a day.

This may be the only photograph of Kendall’s water wheel, which resembles the fan of a windmill. Only the top of the 27-foot wheel is visible above the tidal flow in the Cathance River in Bowdoinham, Maine, in the late 1800s.

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Tour a Huntington, N.Y., Tide Mill This Summer or Fall

Only five 2024 dates remain for touring the Van Wyck-Lefferts tide mill in Huntington, Long Island, N.Y. [Location on Google Maps.] The next available tour is Monday, August 19, and the last tour of the season will be October 18.

The Van Wyck-Lefferts mill is the best preserved 18th century U.S. tide-powered grist mill known to remain in its original location. It is also one of only two remaining U.S. tide mills with machinery and millstones intact. The site is maintained by the Lefferts Tide Mill & Preserve, who is continuing its multi-year fundraising and restoration campaign for the mill building and dam.

The mill site is accessible only by water, making it necessary to take visitors to the mill by boat. The tours are being offered by the Huntington Historical Society in partnership with the Lefferts Tide Mill & Preserve.

Advance registration is required. The tour cost is $20 ($15 for Huntington Historical Society members) and lasts 90 minutes. Since access to the mill is by boat, some climbing up and down steps and into and out of the boat is required. (Please note that neither the boat nor the mill is handicapped accessible and there are no bathrooms on site. This trip is not available to children under age 12.)

Tour Dates

Monday, August 19th – 11:00 am
Monday, September 9th – 3:30 pm
Monday, September 16th – 9:30 am
Friday, October 4th – 12:15 pm
Friday, October 18th – 11:45 am

For more information or to register, visit the Lefferts Tide Mill & Preserve website.

Tidal Barrage and Tidal Stream Power Generation in the News

by David Hoyle

Mersey Tidal Power Project concept image illustrates the barrage system. (Image courtesy of Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.)

Two tidal energy projects that have been featured in the news recently nicely illustrate the two primary types of tidal hydropower generation systems: tidal barrage and tidal stream.

Tidal barrage systems are analogous to historical tide mills: seawater is impounded behind a dam at high tide; when the tide has partially ebbed outside the dam, water is released through sluices to drive turbines that generate electricity. Modern tidal barrage plants are typically able to generate power on both ebbing and flooding tides. Currently, there are only two large-scale commercial tidal power plants in the world. One is in La Rance, France, and the other is in Sihwa Lake, South Korea. Each generates approximately 250 MW, enough to power 250,000 homes.

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Annual Tide Mill Conference Rescheduled for May 4, 2024, in Kittery, ME

Kittery Community Center. (Photo courtesy of OurKittery.com and Charles Denault.)

Last October’s Annual Tide Mill Conference was postponed because of a local emergency, but it has now been rescheduled for Saturday, May 4. The conference theme, “Harnessing Tides for Energy and Agriculture,” remains the same.

The May 4 conference will convene at the Kittery Community Center in Kittery, Maine, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time (12:30 UTC) for in-person and for online participants via Zoom conferencing.

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