LONDON, UK , March 14, 2007.
The world's largest wave farm will be built off the Scottish island of Orkney, at a cost of £10 million.
ScottishPower will receive £4 million from the Scottish Executive to subsidize the 3 MW facility, which is expected to be operation by next year. Using technology from Ocean Power Delivery of Edinburgh, the four 120 m Pelamis ‘sea snakes’ will be the second time the technology has been used in a commercial wave farm. The first three snakes, with combined capacity of 2.3 MW, are due to begin operation this spring in Portugal.
The jointed cylinders sit semi-submerged in the water and use hydraulic rams to generate power. The four units will be moored off the European Marine Test Centre in Orkney; a test prototype has already been taken to Orkney from Edinburgh’s Port of Leith by Ocean Power Delivery.
“Scotland has the potential to generate a quarter of Europe's marine energy and kick-starting the sector is vital if we are to create a significant industry based in Scotland and meet our long-term renewables targets,” says Deputy First Minister Nicol Stephen.
The 750 kW prototype Pelamis machine had an extensive refit and upgrade in Leith before it was towed back to Orkney. The tests will provide additional resource and performance information for the prototype which now includes a remotely operated mooring attachment system allowing the use of smaller support vessels to minimise operating costs, improvements to the efficiency of the hydraulic power generation system, and an upgrade to the control system to enhance power capture performance.
The sea trials in the North Sea included testing of the new mooring attachment system, and full machine trials from a support vessel in waves of 5 m.
“This is a massive step forward,” adds Keith Anderson of ScottishPower. “It will be a critical test of the actual devices that will be used commercially and, if successful, should help propel Scotland into the forefront of marine energy throughout the world.”
“The reason people get so excited about the potential of marine is the fact it is very, very predictable and a very constant source of energy production,” he says. Every metre of Scottish coastline has enough wave energy to power 100 homes.
“Wave technology for a long time has languished in the lab,” says Richard Yemm of OPD. “We are now putting the technology in the water where we can measure it on a commercial basis.”
UK environment secretary David Miliband toured the Pelamis unit last month after it had completed sea trials in the North Sea. “It is hugely encouraging to see the UK leading the field in wave power and to see that taking measures to tackle climate change is not just about costs and penalties, but that there is strong economic potential in UK jobs and exports if we can develop this market,” he said.
ScottishPower recently agreed to a Euro 17.2 billion merger with Spanish utility Iberdrola, and claims to be the UK's leading wind generator.
The World Energy Council has estimated the market potential for wave energy to be 2000 TWh per year, equivalent to the existing markets for nuclear and hydro with a value of £500 billion. The global potential would reduce CO2 emissions by 2,000 Mt per year.
Last year, the Carbon Trust reported that marine energy could provide one-fifth of Britain’s current electricity and be cost-competitive with conventional generation providing the right level of investment was provided. A Scottish Executive forum on renewable energies identified a potential for 7,000 jobs in marine energy by 2020, with 10% of Scotland's electricity being supplied by marine energy and an industry supplying 100 MW to export markets.
Ocean Power Delivery was formed in 1998 after wave energy was included for the first (and only) time as a supported tariff under the third Scottish Renewables Order (SRO3). OPD currently employs 70 full-time staff in Leith, Methil (Fife) and Peniche (Portugal).
The Scottish Executive has targets to generate 18% of electricity from renewables by 2010 and 40% by 2020. Scotland is expected to meet its 18% green power target during 2007.
The Scottish Executive recently granted £300,000 to help the European Marine Energy Centre establish the world's first quality control standards for wave and tidal energy technology.
