World's Largest Tidal Turbine Planned for Scotland by Year's End

A Singapore-based company, Atlantis Resources Corporation, revealed this week in Scotland that it has built the world's largest tidal turbine, a device it is calling the AK1000. The tidal turbine stands 75 high, with six 60-foot long rotors, and weighs 1,430 tons. Atlantis plans to install the AK1000 near Scotland's Orkney Islands later this year. Once installed, the one-megawatt rotor will produce enough energy to power at least 1,000 homes in Scotland.

Tidal turbines like this one have a few advantages over wind turbines. This tidal turbine is expected to produce twice the energy possible from a similarly sized wind turbine, since tides are more predictable and constant than wind. Additionally, a tidal turbine can often be most effective in coastal inlets with strong currents. Such inlets are often near areas of dense population, making tidal turbines ideal for producing energy near the areas that need it most.

Tides near Scotland and other parts of the United Kingdom may be harnessed to produce enough electricity for 1.4 million homes by 2020, according to the British government. Atlantis CEO Timothy Cornelius is optimistic that his company's new tidal turbine is only an early step in the development of marine power as an alternative form of energy for Scotland and for the rest of the world.