Atlantis and DP Energy join forces at FORCE

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11th September 2015

  • Atlantis Resources and DP Energy launch partnership to develop multi-turbine array at FORCE in Canada
  • The deal will see DP Energy take an active role alongside Atlantis in driving the Canadian tidal market
  • Financing and front end engineering design is expected to be completed in 2016 in anticipation of an offshore construction commencement date in 2017
  • DP Energy plans a 100MW tidal scheme off the County Antrim coast at Fair Head

11 September 2015: Today, leading international tidal developer Atlantis and global renewables company Cork-based DP Energy announce they have formed a partnership to develop a multi-turbine array at the Fundy Ocean Research Centre for Energy (FORCE) facility in Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia, Canada. The deal will see DP Energy acquire a 50% stake in Atlantis Operations Canada Limited (“AOCL”).

AOCL is the leaseholder of a berth at the FORCE facility in Canada, which was awarded a 4.5MW feed-in-tariff by the Nova Scotia Department of Energy in December 2014.

The partnership will enable DP Energy to take an active role alongside Atlantis in bringing AOCL’s opportunities to fruition and tapping into the huge potential of the Canadian tidal market.

Atlantis and DP Energy are now looking forward to working with FORCE, the Department of Energy in Nova Scotia, the local supply chain, business owners, the North American investment community and local stakeholders to develop the joint project.

It is anticipated that the array will include AR1500 turbines from Atlantis’ turbine division. Financing and front end engineering design is expected to be completed in 2016 in anticipation of an offshore construction commencement date in 2017.

Tim Cornelius, CEO of Atlantis, said:

“We are delighted to be partnering with DP Energy to develop tidal power projects in Nova Scotia. We have now created a project development platform that the local supply chain can invest in, with confidence. Coupled with the unwavering support of the Nova Scotian Department of Energy and the leadership of FORCE, AOCL will be an attractive investment proposition for project financers looking to make use of the feed in tariffs available for tidal stream projects in the Province.

This partnership is further demonstration of the inevitable consolidation that is occurring across the tidal power sector globally, and Atlantis is proud to be leading the charge. DP Energy is a well-established developer of renewable energy projects globally, and Simon’s energy and vision will no doubt help drive this multi-turbine initiative to a successful conclusion.”

Simon De Pietro, CEO of DP Energy, said:

“DP Energy is delighted to partner with Atlantis on this project in support of the Nova Scotia Government initiative to promote and demonstrate the potential for the use of tidal energy. Tidal power has the capability to become a major source of renewable electricity production globally and we are eager to take on the exciting challenges provided by the tidal resource in the Bay of Fundy.

 The venture adds further depth to the growing portfolio of renewable energy projects of the DP Energy group of companies worldwide.”

 

 ENDS

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Notes to Editors

For more information regarding Atlantis, please contact Stephanie Blott or Caroline Cutler on +44 (0)203 727 1898 or email [email protected]

For more information regarding DP Energy, please contact Simon De Pietro +353 (0) 87 9722399 or email [email protected]

 

About Atlantis Resources

Atlantis Resources Limited is a vertically integrated turbine supplier and project developer in the tidal power industry. The Atlantis group holds equity positions in a diverse portfolio of tidal stream development projects, which includes a stake of 85% in MeyGen Limited, the company developing the MeyGen project in Scotland.

Alongside its project development interests, Atlantis owns a portfolio of patents and patent applications relating to tidal power generation and sells tidal generation equipment and engineering services to third party developers as well as its own projects. The Atlantis group, which is revenue generating, also conducts industrial research and development, and provides specialist consulting services globally.

Atlantis Resources was admitted to AIM on 20 February 2014.

(www.atlantisresourcesltd.com)

 

About DP Energy

DP Energy is a renewable energy developer with over 20 years experience in developing, building and operating wind farms across the UK and Ireland both as an independent developer and in conjunction with its JV partners. DP Energy is a project yield and IRR driven technology neutral and manufacturer agnostic developer focussed on delivery of best technology for any given site.

Since 2008 DP Energy has diversified beyond wind into new renewables technologies – including solar, tidal and storage, and also in developing projects based on these technologies in jurisdictions further afield from North America to Australasia. It currently has a development portfolio of over 1000MW of projects at various stages of development from shovel ready to early permitting, including some 330MW of Tidal Energy in Scotland and Northern Ireland. (www.dpenergy.com)

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simon-de-PietroMaureen-De-Pietro
Simon and Maureen De Pietro, owners of DP Energy.

Sunny Revenue Generator for Irish Land Owners?

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8th September 2015

The firm behind plans for a 100MW tidal power scheme off the coast of north east Antrim is launching an appeal to landowners throughout the island of Ireland for sites on which large-scale solar power schemes could be installed.

DP Energy which is based in County Cork, says it wants to build a clear picture of potentially available parcels of land of about 25 acres or more on which solar parks could be installed.

Managing director Simon De Pietro says solar technologies have become more efficient than ever and are now capable of generating power in less sunny regions in northern Europe.

“Solar energy technology has become much more efficient in recent years and Ireland now stands to benefit hugely from the development of solar parks,” says Mr De Pietro. “The new technology means ease of installation and maintenance; also the costs of solar power are coming down making it an increasingly attractive alternative.

“These parks would generate significant income for the land owners,” says Mr de Pietro. “The initial work including environmental impact studies, public consultation and all planning requirements would be undertaken by the firm and once the go-ahead was given for the installation, a commercial contract would be agreed between us and the land owner over a lease period.”

The firm is committed to environmental protection and the development of sustainable energy sources. It has been developing and building exclusively renewable energy schemes in Ireland for more than 20 years and has a strong track record of successful partnerships with farmers and land owners. It is now working internationally on projects in Australia, Canada and the UK and is the largest independent tidal energy developer in Europe.

Interested landowners who have a plot of relatively flat land of 25 acres or more and which is south or west facing should contact DP Energy  by phone (022 23955 ext 11) or by email: [email protected].

Fair Head Tidal project for 100MW takes step closer to start.

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12th June 2015

The team behind the 100MW Fair Head Tidal energy project which would supply enough clean power for the equivalent of all homes in the Coast and Glens Council area says it has now completed over 95% of the offshore survey work required to support a planning application for its seabed turbines.

In an update circulated to a wide range of project stakeholders including organisations in the Ballycastle and Rathlin areas, the Fair Head Tidal project company says good progress is being made on the proposal to develop an array of tidal turbines located on the seabed about 2km east of Fair Head.

Clodagh McGrath, Fair Head Tidal project manager, says the company is within one month of completing a 24 month bird and marine mammal survey programme.

This is bolstered by the completion of other onshore and offshore surveys, including visits to potential cable landfall sites and a campaign of tidal measurements over the winter months.

“Talks have also progressed positively with government agencies, regulators and the grid owners with regards to accessing available capacity in the Ballycastle area for grid connection,” says Ms McGrath.

Fair Head Tidal has confirmed that there will be further engagement with the public and stakeholders regarding the proposal, with another round of local open days ahead of submission of a formal planning application. Ms McGrath says: “We are keen to share further information on our plans. Our priority continues to be the delivery of a tidal energy scheme which will generate clean, emissions free, predictable and sustainable energy. We believe such a scheme will bring benefits to the local area and the wider Northern Ireland economy, both during construction and operation.”

The Fair Head Tidal Scoping Opinion document was issued in May by DETI and the Department of Environment (DoE). This opinion and other Fair Head Tidal documents will shortly be on view on the DETI website www.detini.gov.uk.

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Media contact: Joris Minne, JPR, tel: 028 9076 0066 or [email protected]

www.fairheadtidal.com

DP Energy holds open days for major wind/solar PV project in Australia

DP Energy held Community Open Days for the Port Augusta Renewable Energy Park project at the Port Augusta Institute Theatre on the 5th and 6th of May 2015. The purpose of the Open Days was to provide the community with an opportunity to view information about the project, to speak directly with the developers and their technical representatives, and to have questions answered in person.

Approximately 70 people attended the Open Days, and the feedback received was generally positive with more than 70% of questionnaires completed indicating support for the project. Whilst these only represent approximately one quarter of the total number of attendees, our feeling is that this is a fair representation of the positive nature of the event. Much of the interest was on the potential employment and other opportunities that the project will bring to the region.

DP Energy would like to thank all those who attended. The Open Day material is available is available for download by following the Port Augusta project link on this website

Renewable Energy Firm Warns Australian Government Over Targets

Leading independent renewable energy development firm DP Energy has warned Australian parliamentarians that reducing green power targets  are damaging damage investment opportunities in that country.

John Thouless, DP Energy’s chief operating officer has written to every  MP in the ruling Coalition government to say that the lack of a resolution and continuing uncertainty surrounding renewable energy targets (RET) is having a profound impact on the renewables sector in Australia.

“Our ability to invest in the country and its workforce is being restricted by the lack of certainty,” Mr Thouless says in an open letter. “I would also caution the potential for wider damage to Australia’s reputation as a safe and reliable investment destination and the risk of impact to other sectors.”

DP Energy outlined its plans for wind and solar development with a capital programme value exceeding A$1.5bn.  “Unfortunately the pace of our activities and the corresponding investment decisions have continued to slow down and we are urging politicians on all sides to work together to constructively resolve the RET issue,” says Mr Thouless.

Thouless cites the outcome of the statutory review of the RET completed by the Climate Change Authority in 2014 which states: “the target should remain fixed in terms of giga-watt hours to provide confidence to investors.”

DP Energy says it is asking MPs to consider the recent proposal by the Clean Energy Council (CEC). The CEC proposed a moderate reduction in the target, to somewhere in the mid-to-high thirty thousand GWH along with exemptions for Emissions-Intensive Trade-Exposed (EITE) and removal of the legislated two-yearly reviews. DP Energy supports this proposal for the following reasons:

  • Despite the lengthy review period no strong case has been put forward as to why the RET should be scaled back;
  • The government’s own (non-statutory) review concluded that retention of the RET would act to lower future electricity prices, recent increases in which it had used as a  justification for the review;
  • The proposal to remove the legislated two-yearly reviews provides the stable and enduring environment in which companies such as DP Energy can make 20 plus year investment commitments;
  • Providing an exemption for Emissions-Intensive Trade-Exposed (EITE) industries has wide spread political support; and
  • The impact on the renewable industry could be partially offset by an increase in the short-term targets to absorb the current surplus of certificates, consideration of re-profiling the target, and a corresponding extension of the scheme beyond 2030.

It is apparent that some compromise is required to break the current deadlock and there is significant common ground upon which to reach this.

DP Energy takes step closer to delivering its first Energy Scheme in Canada.

Ireland-based renewable energy development company DP Energy took a step closer today to the installation of a 4.5MW tidal stream demonstration power plant in the Bay of Fundy, Nova Scotia, the first of its kind in Canada.

Nova Scotia’s Minister of Energy Andrew Younger said his Department’s intention to identify a fifth berth in the Fundy Ocean Research Centre for Energy (FORCE) with DP Marine Energy was progressing positively. The move follows DP Energy’s submission in response to the Nova Scotia Request for Proposals late last year.

Speaking at the International Conference on Ocean Energy in the World Trade & Convention Centre in Halifax yesterday, November 4, Minister Younger expressed his confidence that the full power production capacity in Phase 1 of a comprehensive program in the Bay of Fundy would be allocated soon. It is expected that grid-connected clean renewable electricity to the Nova Scotia Power Parrsboro substation would start flowing from the FORCE demonstration facility in the Bay of Fundy within two years.

DP Energy has been working closely with technology partners ANDRITZ HYDRO Hammerfest and ANDRITZ HYDRO Canada since 2013 on the project plan, and the team believe that they now have a very compelling proposition in place. Simon De Pietro, managing director of DP Energy, says that a development of a berth in Fundy would position the firm which he and his mother Maureen established 20 years ago as an early stage wind development company, firmly at the top of the marine energy development sector.

“This would be a very significant development for DP Energy and an expression of our confidence in tidal energy generation as a key component in the portfolio of reliable, predictable and emissions free power sources needed to take us into a more sustainable
future,” says Mr De Pietro.

The Cork-based firm became Europe’s largest independent developer of tidal stream energy following its acquisition of the Westray South project from SSE Renewables in April 2014.

DP Energy takes centre stage at Europe’s Premier Ocean Energy event.

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www.OceanEnergyConference.eu

DP Energy will partner with Ocean Energy Europe 2014 as a Silver Sponsor for the most importantevent in the calendar of the European ocean energy sectors. The event takes place on 1-2 October in the Marriott Rive Gauche Hotel, Paris. European Commissioners for Energy (Guenther Oettinger) and Maritime Affairs (Maria Damanaki) have confirmed their participation in the event.

Several of the EU’s energy ministers will speak alongside DP Energy’s CEO Simon De Pietro, as well as CEOs and Directors from Europe’s most important industrial companies during a high-level session on 1 October. The conference will host the first meeting of the Ocean Energy Forum’s High Level Board. At this meeting, Energy Ministers from across the EU and senior industry CEOs, will be asked to discuss and endorse the preliminary recommendations of the European Commission’s Ocean Energy Forum. Simon De Pietro also takes the stage in the opening session on 2 October entitled ‘Finance 1: Funding an Emerging Industry’. This session will explore what public finance solutions are available at EU and National level to support risk sharing, and how to develop ‘fit-for-purpose’ finance options for demonstration and early commercial projects. Following the acquisition of Westray South earlier this year, DP Energy has the largest portfolio of tidal stream projects in the world held by an independent developer and will bring this experience to bear alongside their European counterparts. Mr De Pietro will also lend his experience to a consenting session taking place on the afternoon of 2 October entitled ‘Streamlining Project Development: Removing the Financial Burden of Consenting’. Furthermore, DP Energy will take part in the Ocean Energy Europe 2014 exhibition, alongside 40 other leading European companies active in the ocean energy sector. The exhibition will take place over both days of the conference.

Regarding this announcement, Dr Sian George, CEO of Ocean Energy Europe said: “We are delighted that DP Energy has partnered with us to produce Ocean Energy Europe 2014. DPE is a dynamic and innovative organisation with a great vision for the future of this sector and for Europe, which we can fully get behind.”

Commenting on DP Energy’s sponsorship of the event, Simon De Pietro said: “The Ocean Energy Europe 2014 event is a great opportunity for companies operating at the coalface of the marine energy sector to work directly with policy makers from the European Commission and across key Member States to ensure that the industry can be supported to become a key part of the European energy portfolio.”

For further information on Ocean Energy Europe 2014 and to register to attend, visit the conference website: http://www.oceanenergy-europe.eu/index.php/en/events/annual-conference

 

Background

DP Energy is a developer of renewable energy projects, primarily tidal, wind and solar energy. It is headquartered in Ireland, and with a project portfolio spanning Ireland, the UK, Australia and Canada. In tidal DP Energy owns the Westray South project, Orkney and is also part of the consortium developing the Fair Head project, Northern Ireland and West Islay, off the west coast of Scotland.It is a fundamental principle of DP Energy that all its developments are both sustainable and environmentally benign.

Ocean Energy Europe is the trade association for ocean renewables in Europe. It is based in Brussels and has nearly 80 members including some of the world’s leading utilities, engineering companies, device developers and research institutes. Their combined strength makes Ocean Energy Europe the largest and most powerful network of ocean energy professionals in Europe.

Ocean Energy Europe’s annual conference is Europe’s premier ocean energy event. The 2014 edition takes place over two days in Paris, France. It will bring together the biggest players and sharpest minds in the ocean energy sector for two days of intensive discussion and debate. The conference will also feature a 44 stand virtual marketplace for Europe’s ocean energy sector