James Fisher Renewables supports cable installation at MeyGen tidal energy array

James Fisher Renewables supports cable installation at MeyGen tidal energy array

James Fisher Marine Services* and sister company Mojo Maritime** work in partnership to deliver an integrated diving solution at the MeyGen tidal energy array.

The cable installation will provide MeyGen’s Pentland Firth tidal energy array with the connection it requires to the main electricity grid. On the installation’s completion, the tidal energy plant will become the UK’s largest supplier of electricity generation underwater.

* A James Fisher Renewables legacy brand

** Mojo Maritime is now James Fisher Renouvelables

The Challenge

  • MeyGen Limited’s (MeyGen) Pentland Firth tidal energy array – the UK’s largest tidal energy power plant – required a cable installation to provide a line of connection to the electricity grid.
  • The project required multi-skilled personnel to oversee the length of the operation and deliver the shore end cable pull-ins.
  • Cable installation and integrated diving solution needed to be time-flexible and performed in consideration to ever-changing weather and tidal conditions.

The Solution

  • The team worked alongside its sister company, Mojo Maritime**, to provide a multi-skilled diver control unit and a deck compression chamber to conduct the operation in a safe and efficient manner.
  • Preparation dives were performed in advance of the installation to ensure full support and safety when laying the 11km of export cable.
  • Due to the extreme weather conditions faced with tidal speeds of up to six knots, the dive team was at hand on a 24 hour basis for the duration of the project to allow a flexible diving solution when small windows of opportunity to safely enter the water arose.
Pentland Firth tidal array

The results and benefits

  • At project completion, James Fisher Renewables utilised its multi-skilled divers to deliver the shore end cable pull-ins, connecting the tidal energy array to the main electricity grid.
  • The messenger wire installation and shore end cable pull-in operations were successfully completed, providing MeyGen tidal energy array with the integrated diving solution they required.
  • In spite of difficult weather conditions faced, James Fisher Renewables multi-skilled personnel installed the cable solution as safely and effectively as possible and to the client’s satisfaction.
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