The HydroQuest-Hydrowatt consortium has assembled four hydrokinetic turbines in the Port of Lyon in eastern France, ahead of their installation in the River Rhône planned for later in October. The four turbines, with the combined capacity of 320kW, will this month be transported by river and installed at Caluire-et-Cuire in Lyon, before the commissioning and grid-connection operation expected to be completed by the end of the year. The project, selected by French navigation authority in charge of country’s inland waterways Voies navigables de France (VNF) in 2015 through a public call, will produce 1GWh of clean electricity annually which equals the energy consumption of around 400 homes, the developers said. The four tidal turbines were built in Cherbourg by HydroQuest and Constructions Mécaniques de Normandie (CMN). The renewable electricity producer Hydrowatt has taken charge of the administrative procedures as well as the financing of the project, and will operate the tidal farm once installed, according to VNF. This hydrokinetic farm, made up of HydroQuest double-axis vertical turbines, is a continuation of projects already carried in real environment by the company, particularly in Orléans sur la Loire. According to VNF, the project confirms the promising start of a new French industrial sector adapted to the growing energy needs of both industrialized and emerging countries. The project is financed by Hydrowatt, HydroQuest, Triodos Bank and supported by European Union, through the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region.
France's HydroQuest-Hydrowatt consortium plans to install four of its double-axis vertical hydrokinetic turbines in the Rhone river later in October. The four turbines will have a combined 320 kW capacity. The four turbines were built by HydroQuest and Constructions Mecaniques de Normandie. Renewable power producer Hydrowatt has managed and financed the project and will operate the river power facility once it has been installed.