Siemens Opens Its Testing and Assembly Facility in Bristol, UK

Edward Davey, secretary of state for Energy and Climate Change praised Siemens for its investment in innovative marine technologies at the opening of its new testing and assembly facility in Bristol today.

The new 25,000 square feet facility will be the base for the development of next- generation drive trains used in SeaGen – the world’s first and largest tidal turbine developed by Bristol-based Marine Current Turbines (MCT), now a fully-owned Siemens business.

The facility will be the first of its kind in the UK and will be used by the MCT team to assemble and test the first drive trains. Full system testing of the drive trains will be completed at Narec in Northumberland.  The Bristol facility will be used for series production of the systems which will be deployed on the multi-turbine arrays e.g. in the Skerries and Kyle Rhea by 2016 and on other arrays beyond that.

Energy Secretary Edward Davey said:

“Siemens’ new testing and assembly facility for tidal turbines in Bristol is a real boost for the South West and for the UK’s world leading marine energy industry.

“Wave and tidal power has an important part to play in our low carbon energy mix, with the potential to sustain up to 19,000 jobs in this sector alone by 2035.

“That’s why the Coalition has announced levels of support for wave and tidal power generation that are higher than any other low carbon technology.

“I want to see the sector take the final steps to get these exciting technologies to market, so it’s great to see Siemens ramping up their involvement in marine power, I wish the new centre every success.”

The tidal energy sector was also given a boost in February this year, when it was announced that MCT was one of the successful recipients of a £10 million MEAD (Marine Energy Array Demonstration) grant from the Department of Energy and Climate Change. The award together with the announcement of consent for the 10MW Skerries Tidal Array in North Wales, which will be developed by MCT, has also helped to underpin Siemens’ investment in this promising technology.

Achim Wörner, CEO of Siemens Energy Hydro and Ocean Unit said:

“The UK is a key market for Siemens in further developing this pioneering technology. The UK has the right combination of coastal and tidal factors and market development and a favourable investment environment is supported by the government.

“Our proven SeaGen technology operating successfully in Strangford Lough in Northern Ireland since 2008 is capable of full-scale commercialisation and wider deployment. Investment in the new assembly and testing facility in Bristol will enable us to make this step to develop next-generation tidal technology as well as larger arrays. Further commercialisation will have a positive effect on the supply chain, job creation and the generation of eco-friendly electricity for the UK.”

Tidal turbines are part of Siemens’ Environmental Portfolio. In fiscal 2012, revenue from the Portfolio totaled about €33 billion, making Siemens one of the world’s largest suppliers of ecofriendly technologies. In the same period, our products and solutions enabled customers to reduce their carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions by more than 330 million tons, an amount equal to the total annual CO₂ emissions of Berlin, Delhi, Hong Kong, Istanbul, London, New York, Singapore and Tokyo.

[mappress]

Press release, April 8, 2013; Image: Siemens