Energy and marine consultancy ABL France has successfully completed a marine technical study for French tidal energy developers Normandie Hydroliennes (NH) and Hydroquest.
The project aims to support the safe development of the tidal turbine pilot projects NH1 and FloWat – located off Normandy, France
The NH1 and FloWat tidal turbines will be installed close to the Raz Blanchard ferry route, one of the most powerful tidal sites in the world.
In order to mitigate the risk of ferries losing position and passing through the tidal turbine farms, an exclusion zone had to de defined and presented to local authorities.
Normandie Hydroliennes (NH) and Hydroquest contracted ABL’s team in France to provide the technical study to justify the required vessel exclusion zone at the project site.
ABL’s study aimed at defining the drifting speed and direction of a relevant vessel-type in different weather conditions.
The data it produced was considered in parallel with the distance between the ferry route and farm to define the required exclusion zone.
Based on ABL’s marine operational experience, the study took into consideration the captain’s time to react, the number of motors on ferries, the draft of the vessel and other criteria to reduce the risk of contact between the vessel and the tidal turbines.