Turbulent tides hit Alderney

Alderney Commission for Renewable Energy (ACRE) has reportedly cancelled the agreement with Alderney Renewable Energy for the development of tidal power resources around the island’s waters.

The body in charge of licensing and regulating renewable energy developments in Alderney, the ACRE, has decided to end the agreement with Alderney Renewable Energy due to apparent breach of contract, the BBC has reported.

The contract in question is actually a 65-year permit Alderney Renewable Energy received from ACRE in 2008 to install tidal turbines and infrastructure for renewable energy systems in Alderney’s territorial waters in the English Channel – an area of 48 square miles with an estimated tidal resource in excess of 3000MW.

James Dent, Alderney’s Policy and Finance Committee Chairman, was quoted as saying by BBC that Alderney Renewable Energy was repeatedly warned about the breaches of the contract, and after no measures were taken to amend it, the Commission decided to terminate the agreement.

Declan Gaudion, Director of Alderney Renewable Energy, has called Dent’s claims ‘inaccurate and misleading’ in a email statement sent to Tidal Energy Today.

Gaudion said: “Alderney Renewable Energy was disappointed to hear the report given by Mr Dent at yesterday’s States Meeting. We do not recognize many of the claims put forward in the report which were inaccurate and misleading.

“Alderney Renewable Energy looks forward to working closely with the States of Alderney and its advisors, as we progress with our plans for tidal development in Alderney’s waters.”

Tidal Energy Today has contacted the ACRE to seek more information. The ACRE transferred the inquiry to the States of Alderney CEO, Victor Brownlees, stating that he was in charge of the matter. Should Tidal Energy Today receive any further information, the article will be updated accordingly.

To remind, Alderney Renewable Energy formed a partnership with a DCNS company, OpenHydro, in 2014 to develop a 300MW tidal array off the island.

The companies created the joint called Race Tidal Ltd to drive the project forward, planned for installation from 2021, to coincide with the start of operation of an inter-connector between the UK and France, known as the FAB Link. The FAB Link will provide an export route for the electricity generated by the tidal arrays.