Schottel supplies to MeyGen

German specialist Schottel Hydro has announced that it will manufacture and deliver the variable pitch hub for the AR1500 turbine for Phase 1a of the Scotland-based MeyGen tidal energy project under contract to Lockheed Martin.

The MeyGen Phase 1a AR1500, a 1.5 MW seabed mounted turbine, is being designed and delivered by Atlantis Resources and Lockheed Martin. The MeyGen project intends to generate up to 398 MW with offshore tidal turbines by the early 2020s.

The AR1500 will have an approximate rotor diameter of 18 meters which will require a strong and robust hub to accommodate the essential pitch mechanism. Schottel will provide this substantial hub with a housing diameter of 2.4 metres and a weight of approximately 35 tons. The active pitch mechanism inside will adjust the rotor blades to the flow and thus add to the optimum alignment of the full yaw turbine.

Schottel provided the turbine shaft, hub and pitch mechanism including hydraulics and controls to the first Hammerfest HS1000 turbine in 2011.

The company will deliver the hub in early 2016, and the installation of the AR1500 is planned for later the same year.

MeyGen, owned by tidal power pioneer Atlantis Resources, is located in the Inner Sound of the Pentland Firth, a strait to the North of mainland Scotland, with strong tidal currents.