Singapore-based firm develops world's largest tidal turbine

Making waves in clean energy sector
Singapore-based firm develops world's largest tidal turbine, to be unveiled today
Jessica Cheam Straits Times 12 Aug 10;

SINGAPORE'S clean energy sector can pat itself on the back today as the world's largest tidal turbine is unveiled at Invergordon, Scotland.

While the turbine, which can generate consistent electricity to power 1,000 British homes, is thousands of kilometres away, it represents a key moment for the growing clean technology or 'cleantech' industry in Singapore.

The AK1000 turbine was largely designed here and tested in the waters off Raffles Lighthouse in 2008 during its lengthy development.

Mr Timothy Cornelius, chief executive of Singapore-based Atlantis Resources Corporation, the firm behind the turbine, told The Straits Times that its unveiling is the 'culmination of 10 years of hard work and belief from all partners and staff'.

The 1MW turbine - which weighs 150 tonnes, is 22.5m tall and costs about US$3 million (S$4.1 million) - will be located at a site in the Orkney Islands and connected to the power grid later this month. The payback period is five to 10 years, depending on the flow rate of the waves, he said.

It is an important milestone not only for Atlantis, which has invested $100 million of private investors' funds into developing the turbine, but also for the global marine power industry, he added.

'This is when ocean power generation goes from being in the research space to the commercial space.'

The company, which originated in Australia before moving its headquarters to Singapore five years ago, is now looking for locations to build a manufacturing plant that will produce turbines for commercial use.

Dwindling fossil fuel resources and growing concerns about their impact on climate change have sparked a global race for clean power, with tidal energy shaping up as a key alternative.

Apart from Scotland, countries like Japan, South Korea and India have vast untapped tidal energy resources that could be converted into renewable energy, thus reducing reliance on fossil fuels, said Mr Cornelius.

But Singapore's waters are too busy with shipping for tidal energy to be tapped. If all goes well, Atlantis could look into listing on an Asian bourse - possibly Singapore - next year, he added.

Mr Cornelius credited the company's success to its move to Singapore, which gave it access to a highly skilled labour force and research collaborations with institutions like Nanyang Technological University. It now has a local staff strength of about 15.

'Singapore has strong intellectual property laws too, which was a key pull factor for us,' he said.

The Economic Development Board's cleantech director Goh Chee Kiong said yesterday Atlantis' presence in Singapore will 'increase the vibrancy of the fast-growing cleantech industry'.

'This project affirms Singapore's attractiveness as a global home for cleantech businesses,' said Mr Goh, who also highlighted that Atlantis benefited from Singapore's strengths in existing industry clusters like precision engineering, offshore and marine.

Atlantis said it was pursuing projects in the Asia-Pacific region, especially to 'power-hungry' markets. 'We are confident of developing tidal power as a credible new renewable asset class in Asia,' said Mr Cornelius.