Sustainable Marine Energy sinks into administration

The Edinburgh-based tidal energy company Sustainable Marine Energy has been placed into administration, appointing joint administrators of accountancy and business advisory firm Johnston Carmichael to lead the process.

Graeme Bain and Donald McNaught from Johnston Carmichael have been appointed as joint administrators for Sustainable Marine Energy, which was placed into administration on Wednesday, August 9, 2023.

The marine renewables solution provider, which was founded in 2012, sought to deliver clean, reliable, and predictable tidal energy, mainly for island and coastal communities.

Last year its Canadian subsidiary was successful in harnessing tidal currents in the country’s Bay of Fundy, in Nova Scotia, using its innovative, floating in-stream tidal PLAT-I platform.

It was the first time floating in-stream tidal power had ever been provided to Nova Scotia’s grid. The company’s PLAT-I tidal energy platforms had six turbines mounted on its stern, which were driven by the flow of water, to produce electricity.

However, in May this year its Canadian subsidiary was placed into an insolvency process due to permitting issues with Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), resulting in the suspension of its operations in Canada.

The Edinburgh-based company has also now been placed into administration.

Graeme Bain, restructuring director at Johnston Carmichael, said: “Sustainable Marine Energy has been a leading developer of tidal energy solutions for several years and had demonstrated the value of that development through the successful implementation of its innovative PLAT-I platform in Canada. 

“The difficult decision was made by the UK-based company to enter administration due to the impact caused by the recent insolvency of its Canadian subsidiary in May.

“In conjunction with our Energy, Infrastructure and Sustainability team of sector experts, an assessment of the potential future viability of the current Canadian project will be undertaken and, with the potential for the application of its technology in other parts of the world, interest will also be sought for the company’s intellectual property in due course.”

A small number of jobs in the UK have been lost as a result of the company having ceased to trade.

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