SIMEC Atlantis Energy Ltd (AIM:SAE, OTC:SMAYF) said government funding has been secured to get its tidal turbines back in the water in Pentland Firth, Scotland.
Scottish Enterprise has granted the flagship MeyGen scheme a non-convertible loan of £2.5mln to help enable the redeployment of the two remaining turbines within the next 12 months. A 1.5-megawatt tidal turbine was deployed last month.
The next turbine will be redeployed in May and the final turbine in March 2023, with a connection system that lessens future turbine recovery and deployment costs by more than a half, the Scottish green energy operator said.
MeyGen is set to be the world's largest planned tidal stream project, and is being built over a number of stages just over a mile off Scotland's north coast in some of the fastest flowing waters in the UK.
Four turbines for the project entered their 25-year operational phase in 2018 and green energy exports to the grid reached 24.7 gigawatt hours by 2020.
With the turbine's performance having "far exceeded expectations" when operational, SIMEC said, the Scottish Enterprise funding will be used for deployment to ensure the project's continuation.
"I would like to thank Scottish Enterprise for their continued support of the business and the MeyGen project. The successes and challenges we have faced on this project pave the way to establish a world leading industry in Scotland and bring huge economic and environmental benefits for Scotland and the UK," said Graham Reid, chief executive.
"Scotland is rightly known as a world leader in the marine sector and central to this is MeyGen. Scottish Enterprise has had a longstanding partnership with the project and we look forward to developing this further as we support the energy transition and deliver sustainable economic growth for all of Scotland's communities," added Kerry Sharp, Scottish Enterprise director of growth investments.