OpenHydro, has won the contract to develop the first tidal current demonstration farm to be connected to the French electricity grid, it was announced yesterday (20th October). The company was selected by Électricité de France (EDF) from among five leading tidal technology developers according to technical, environmental and financial criteria. The turbines will, says the company, be progressively connected to the French electricity network from 2011.

Brendan Gilmore, Chairman, OpenHydro, said: "OpenHydro's collaboration with EDF marks a major step forward in our company's development. Our vision for ocean energy is the development, jointly with utilities, of farms of tidal turbines capable of delivering a significant percentage of European and World energy demand whilst reducing carbon emissions.

Pierre Gadonneix, Chairman and Chief Executive, EDF, said: "This project places EDF and France among the world leaders in marine energy and is part of our respective commitments in the fight against global warming. While the EDF Group's commitment in this sector is longstanding – the tidal power station at La Rance, built over 40 years ago, remains the most powerful one in the world - it is also involved in numerous projects through its subsidiaries EDF Energy and EDF Energies Nouvelles."

The project involves the installation of at least 4 and up to 10 large seabed mounted marine turbines in a tidal farm located in the Paimpol-Bréhat (Côtes d'Armor) region of Brittany. The project is expected to create up to 30 new jobs at OpenHydro's manufacturing facility at Greenore, in Ireland.