Akuo Energy, DCNS and Entrepose to work together to develop onshore OTEC plant for Martinique

Under the auspices of French Prime Minister Manuel Valls, Akuo Energy, DCNS and Entrepose (VINCI Construction) have announced the signing of a partnership agreement regarding an Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) plant project on the island of Martinique, a project called NAUTILUS. Renewable marine power developer Akuo Energy will use technology from DCNS in the OTEC plant. Entrepose will carry out the engineering at sea.

Nautilus project (source: DCNS)
Nautilus project (source: DCNS)

The 5.7-megawatt onshore OTEC plant at Bellefontaine in Martinique will cost about 150 million euros ($183 million) to build. It’ll be funded with non-recourse project finance, and Akuo intends to begin construction in 2016. The NAUTILUS project will complement the NEMO offshore OTEC plant project that Akuo Energy and DCNS have already planned to install off the coast of this Caribbean island. It should help Martinique become energy self-sufficient.
Hervé Guillou, Chairman and CEO of DCNS, said: “The NAUTILUS and NEMO projects that we are going to carry out together in Martinique will enable us to assess the two OTEC technologies that DCNS has developed and that could eventually benefit all maritime tropical regions that are not connected to continental electricity networks. This is also an opportunity for France to prepare for the upramping of the expertise of its various industrial players and develop a sector of excellence that can be exported.
Akuo, DCNS, Entrepose sign Nautilus contract (source: DCNS)
Akuo, DCNS, Entrepose sign Nautilus contract (source: DCNS)

At the commercial stage, the development of this industrial sector will lead to the creation of hundreds of long-term jobs in mainland France and French Overseas Regions. The skills developed in France will represent a solid foundation for future overseas projects. Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion represents a global market worth 35 billion euros and concerns around a hundred countries with a broad variety of energy issues and requirements.
Sources:

  • News by DCNS
  • http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-12-23/akuo-energy-plans-ocean-thermal-power-plant-in-martinique.html
  • http://www.vinci-construction.com/en/news
  • http://news.oceanhub.com/