Company delays deployment of second Bay of Fundy turbine

Cape Sharp Tidal is delaying plans to put a second turbine in the Bay of Fundy until after winter, and says it now expects deployment to happen before the summer of 2018.

When the company installed its first two-megawatt turbine in the Minas Passage last year, it said a second would follow in 2017. On Wednesday, the company announced the delay.

"Part of the work we are doing, which is focused on improving efficiency and reliability, is taking a few weeks longer than we anticipated in our original timeline," Cape Sharp Tidal said in news release.

The company also said with winter approaching, its "next marine operations will take place when the weather is calmer and more predictable."

In June, Cape Sharp Tidal, which is a partnership between energy companies Emera and OpenHydro, removed its first turbine from the Minas Passage and sent it to Saint John, where it planned to carry out inspections and upgrades.

No date has been set to put the first turbine back in the water. Cape Sharp Tidal said the second turbine has not been in the water yet.

Once the second turbine is deployed, a spokesperson for Cape Sharp Tidal said the company will be turning its attention to next steps for the recovered turbine.

"We are applying what we learned from our first deployment to that turbine and the monitoring equipment," the release said.

Cape Sharp Tidal said short delays are common on "demonstration projects like this."