A TIDAL energy company based in Edinburgh has fallen into administration.
Sustainable Marine Energy Ltd has ceased to trade, with administrators Johnston Carmichael saying a “small number” of jobs will be lost in the UK as a result.
It comes after the company’s Canadian subsidiary became insolvent as federal regulators did not provide a permit for its tidal project in Nova Scotia.
Canada’s fisheries and oceans department (DFO) did not give approval for the company’s floating in-stream Plat-I tidal energy platform to continue in the Bay of Fundy.
The company says the platform, which has six turbines mounted on its stern, successfully produced renewable electricity.
Earlier this year, the DFO told broadcaster CBC that it needed more information about the impact of the tidal platform on fish.
Graeme Bain, restructuring director at Johnston Carmichael, said: “SME has been a leading developer of tidal energy solutions for several years and had demonstrated the value of that development through the successful implementation of its innovative Plat-I platform in Canada.
“The difficult decision was made by the UK-based company to enter administration due to the impact caused by the recent insolvency of its Canadian subsidiary in May.
“In conjunction with our energy, infrastructure and sustainability team of sector experts, an assessment of the potential future viability of the current Canadian project will be undertaken and, with the potential for the application of its technology in other parts of the world, interest will also be sought for the company’s intellectual property in due course.”
