Subsea cables laid for Pentland Firth MeyGen project

Siem Daya 1 and a smaller support vessel laying the cables off the Caithness coast

Four subsea cables have been laid for a renewable energy scheme in the Inner Sound of the Pentland Firth.

About six miles (11km) of cable in total have been put down to allow electricity generated by four tidal turbines to reach the nearby shore.

Atlantis, the majority owner of the project, eventually plans to have up to 269 turbines on the seabed.

The Pentland Firth is a stretch of water separating the north Caithness coast and Orkney.

Reels of cable were loaded on to the ship Siem Daya 1 in Hartlepool last week and then transported to the MeyGen site in Caithness.

Work from the boat started on Monday and the cable laying was completed in the early hours of Thursday.