OpenHydro, a DCNS company, is a technology business based in Greenore, Co Louth that designs, manufactures and installs tidal energy systems. They were selected to develop France’s first tidal current demonstration farm for French utility company EDF. In order to meet the customer requirements for the project, OpenHydro designed a new 16m diameter Open-Centre Turbine, capable of delivering up to 2MW of renewable power to the grid; a steel and concrete foundation system to house the turbine, weighing over 750 tons; and a bespoke installation barge capable of deploying the full generation system in less than one hour on site, where challenging weather and marine conditions can restrict access opportunities. This presentation will discuss the principles behind tidal energy generation, highlight the key challenges facing technology developers and describe the solutions developed by OpenHydro to meet these challenges.