Project Portfolio

Blind Channel Off-Grid Tidal Power Demonstration Project

Field testing Mavi’s Mi1 turbine at Canadian Hydrokinetic Test Centre on Winnipeg River

Design and field deployment of custom current meter to measure flow speed at tidal/river sites over multiple days

Performance prediction of vertical axis turbine torque and drag using CFD Modeling

Installing pressure taps on water tank of aircraft under refit for firefighting to quantify loads

Design, build and testing of custom submersible load cell used to measure loads on mooring lines up to 6mT

Design of a 10kW floating vertical axis hydrokinetic turbine

Refit & testing of diver operated ship hull cleaner with a suction system to capture bio-fouling

Modeling of hydrokinetic turbine arrays to provide project development guidelines. Parners; ULaval, NRC & NRCan

Blind Channel Tidal Power Demo Project

Blind Channel Resort is a family-owned full-service marina resort on West Thurlow Island on Canada’s Pacific Coast, located just north of Desolation Sound. (www.blindchannel.com)

Blind Channel is not connected to the BC Hydro grid. Diesel generators are therefore used to meet all electrical needs. Strong tidal currents that routinely reach water speeds of 6 knots flow 500m away from Blind Channel’s marina. Blind Channel therefore makes for an ideal site to demonstrate tidal turbines and associated power systems design to operate in remote communities. Mavi began working with Blind Channel to lay the groundwork for a tidal demonstration project back in 2015. Over the next two years, the team engaged with local stakeholders, obtained permits, and completed upfront engineering work ahead of a deployment.

The technical work included measurements of tidal currents to pinpoint the best deployment location, mapping of the seafloor to inform deployment of anchors and cable laying as well as developing a new power and energy management system capable of integrating tidal power with battery storage into the existing diesel grid.

The mooring system, cable and turbine were installed in June 2017. The baseline functionality of the system was demonstrated over the course of the summer. The turbine produced power into Blind Channel’s central AC grid and charged the batteries for short periods of time.

This was a pioneering project that successfully demonstrated many firsts including the ability to deploy the entire system in just four 1hr slack tide windows using local divers and a landing craft.

More work is required to achieve a fully autonomous hybrid tidal-diesel-battery system and showcase tidal energy as a reliable source of baseload power for remote communities.

Contact us

info@mavi-innovations.ca