South West Marine Energy Park Newsletter - Regensw
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 Welcome Welcome to the fifth edition of the Marine Energy Park Newsletter I hope you all enjoyed the summer and have come back with batteries charged for the year ahead. I had a good long break including a great week diving on the Isles of Scilly - so I felt at first hand both the energy potential of the waves and tidal resources around our coast. The summer has seen a lot of project activity including Seatricity’s deployment at Wave Hub, TEL preparations to deploy in Ramsey Sound and Meygen achieving financial close for their 6 MW pilot project in the Pentland Firth. We have also benefited from the confirmation that Wave Hub Ltd has been awarded 3 further demonstration zones in the region.
Rather less positive is the news that Siemens MCT has put their Skerries Project on hold and that the Celtic Array wind farm has joined the growing list of cancelled projects . So it continues to be a mixed picture as the industry grapples with the issues of finance, technology risk, grid, timing and uncertainty. Lets hope that fortune continues to favour the brave! Johnny Gowdy
Photos courtesy of Malcolm Nimmo
Political change In the cabinet reshuffle, Energy and Climate Change Minister Greg Barker has stepped down to be replaced by Amber Rudd, MP for Hastings and Rye. We are very grateful for all the support that Greg Barker has given to the marine energy industry, including his support for the creation of the SW MEP and look forward to working with Amber Rudd to continue this work. The government has announced that the first allocation round for Contracts for Difference will open on 14th October and has indicated that £155 million is in the pot for less established technologies which includes Offshore Wind, Wave and Tidal. It’s going to be interesting to see how many projects apply for the CfD first time around – certainly we expect several wind projects to be vying for the limited funding available, but it is less clear whether any wave and tidal projects will throw their hats into the CfD ring while the better understood RO scheme is still running. A big week for our friends north of the border but what could Scottish Independence mean for marine energy? Suffice to say we live in interesting times! In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 First device deployed at Wave Hub Seatricity have become the first device developer to deploy at the Wave Hub site off Hayle. The device, the Oceanus 2, was towed from Falmouth and deployed at the site earlier this summer.
“Seatricity’s deployment is an important milestone for Wave Hub. We are particularly pleased to see them drawing on the excellent skills and expertise we have available in the local supply chain, which is an important part of Cornwall’s attraction to the offshore renewable energy industry.” – Claire Gibson, Wave Hub Managing Director
The deployment is a moment of celebration for all involved in the marine energy sector in the south west, and whilst there were concerns that the site was too far ahead of the industry, Wave Hub is now looking like a shrewd investment that is creating jobs locally and supporting development of a new UK industry. Read more here.
Severn Subsea Technologies Redruth-based, Severn Subsea Technologies (SST), part of the Severn Glocon Group, has developed an integrated telemetry and control system for wave power company Seatricity’s Oceanus 2 wave device, now moored at the Cornish Wave Hub. The SST system will enable researchers to correlate wave movement with power generated, and thus optimise power generating conditions offshore. SST has designed and manufactured the valve gear, control, power and communications systems mounted on the buoy and at a shore-based location at the St Ives Coast Watch Facility, and SST’s Redruth headquarters. Mechanically, the telemetry and control system comprises an electrically actuated control valve that can be modulated to vary the pumped water pressure as the wave height changes. SST showcased their systems at a networking event for local companies, attended by George Eustice, MP for Redruth, Camborne and Hayle. Companies from across the south west were able to highlight their outstanding work in the sector. To find out more about the technology click here or the networking event click here. In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 GoBe reinforce their wave & tidal offering GoBe Consultants, a south west strategic environmental planning consultancy specialising in the marine sector, are delighted to welcome marine renewables expert Nikki Meek to their team. With more than 13 years of development experience in the marine renewables sector, having worked as a developer and a service provider, Nikki brings a wealth of knowledge and capabilities to augment the services offered by GoBe. Nikki previously worked at Orecon and KML. GoBe Consultants are a leading strategic and environmental planning consultancy specialising in the marine sector and look to expand their extensive offshore wind portfolio into the wave and tidal sector. Find out more here.
PLAT-O testing Sustainable Marine Energy (SME), an Isle of Wight based marine engineering company, have been developing a systems integration platform for tidal energy converters that facilitates low risk, low cost installation and maintenance access. The platform, PLAT-O, is undergoing testing in the waters of Yarmouth Harbour. The anchoring system has been successfully installed at the site and PLAT-O is being prepared for the next phase of testing at the end of the month.
Find out more here.
7th Bristol Tidal Energy Forum
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 The Crown Estate announces opportunities for wave and tidal projects The Crown Estate have announced a number of new Demonstration Zones for the deployment of wave tidal energy projects, which will further strengthen the south wests leading position in the marine energy industry. The new south west demonstration zones are for tidal energy off the coast of North Devon and for wave energy off North Cornwall. In addition a new demonstration zone for wave energy has been identified off the South Wales coast of Pembrokeshire. Significantly all three demonstration zones will be managed by Wave Hub Ltd, the current managers of the Wave Hub site off Cornwall. Wave Hub Ltd will be working closely with local partners including North Devon Council and Torridge District Council. For more information about these zones please contact [email protected] In addition to the six new Demonstration Zones, five new wave and tidal project leases have been agreed, each site with the potential to deliver a project of 10-30 MW. Significantly, a project site off Portland Bill has been allocated to Bristol based Siemens Marine Current Turbines.
Tidal range leasing round announced The Crown Estate have announced a leasing round for tidal range projects, offering developers the opportunity to secure seabed rights within areas identified within DECC’s Offshore Energy Strategic Environmental Assessment 2, 2011. This includes areas in the Bristol Channel amongst other areas in south west and south Wales waters though excludes the inner Severn Estuary. The timing of this leasing round is such that a lease could be in place to support the Swansea Bay tidal lagoon project, which is currently progressing through planning. This all makes for positive news for a growing interest in tidal lagoons though the next piece of the puzzle, the level of support offered by government under the CfD mechanism, is still unknown. There is currently no allocation for tidal range in the CfD budget. If you would like to request information about the leasing round please email [email protected]
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 £50m for MeyGen Project Atlantis Resource Corporations have raised £50 million to finance the first stage of the MeyGen Project, a 398MW tidal array in Pentland Firth. The funding syndicate responsible includes Department of Energy and Climate Change, Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and The Crown Estate, Atlantis Resources Ltd, a leading tidal developer with their design office based in Bristol, will use the funding for the installation of 4 x 1.5MW turbines and the construction of the onshore infrastructure. Three turbines will be supplied by project partners Andritz Hydro Hammerfest and the fourth will be a Lockheed Martin designed turbine supplied by Atlantis. Having signed a lease with The Crown Estate on 11 September 204, Construction is expected to commence towards the end of 2014 with first power to grid expected in 2016. To find out more click here.
DP success for Mojo Maritime Mojo Maritime’s HF4 vessel has demonstrated ‘stunning’ DP (Dynamic Positioning) performance and manoeuvring characteristics based on results of simulations recently undertaken. Falmouth based Mojo Maritime has concluded the design of the advanced DP system in collaboration with GE and Voith Turbo and it has been tested in DP simulations and shiphandling simulators respectively. These systems provide an accurate model of vessel DP and handling capability. The target was to develop a vessel with the ability to hold station to a tight footprint in currents of up to 10 knots- this dramatically exceeds the capabilities of any vessels currently on the market, thereby providing major risk and cost reductions across a range of industries and operations. To find out more click here
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 Marine energy industry welcomes £1m funding for composites technology innovation The industry has welcomed news of new funding allocated by the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership, to support innovation in composite technology for the marine energy sector. The £1 million fund has been allocated to support Bristol’s growing marine energy sector as part of an £86 million Local Growth Deal that has been awarded to the West of England (LEP). The funding has been earmarked for composite test facilities, reliability/materials studies and manufacturing processes. The SWMEP is working with industry and stakeholders to develop a detailed plan for how the funding will be spent. For more information click here.
Dockyard developments Following the city deal designation of Plymouth earlier this year, the South Yard area of Devonport Dockyard (marked Area 5) is being developed to create a Marine Industries Production Campus (MIPC). The design of the development is currently under consultation and companies interested in finding out more or responding to the consultation should contact Regen SW.
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 10,000 “future jobs” lost in demise of Celtic Array The offshore wind sector suffered another knock earlier this summer, when plans for Europe's largest offshore wind farm were scrapped. The Celtic Array, a 4.2GW farm planned for the west coast of the UK, was cancelled by development partners Centrica and DONG Energy, citing technical challenges of ground conditions as the reason, the same reasons cited by Atlantic Array developer, RWE, when this project met the same fate last November.
Projects in Planning A number of large-scale offshore energy projects, planned for the south west are currently at various stages in the planning system, as per the Planning Act 2008. From accepting an application to making a decision, the whole process lasts approximately 15 months. Navitus Bay , offshore wind farm, off the coast of Dorset – pre examination stage. This stage lasts 3 months, before entering the examination stage and allows registered parties to attend a preliminary meeting with the Inspector. This stage will end in October. Tidal Lagoon Swansea Bay – examination stage. During this stage, interested parties are invited to provide more details of their views in writing. This stage lasts 6 months and will close on 10/12/2014. For more information on the planning process, click here.
The demise of the Celtic Array, coupled with that of the Atlantic Array, leaves the west coast of the UK with no Round 3 offshore wind projects and a dwindling Round 2 pipeline of just 2.6GW left to build. To find out more, read Regen SW’s press release here.
Plans for MCT Skerries project suspended Siemens Marine Current Turbines have suspended work on their 10MW tidal array in the Skerries, Wales. The project had been hit by delays and timescales had slipped beyond agreed deadlines, which reportedly lead to the withdrawal of £10million Marine Energy Array Demonstrator funding by DECC. However, Siemens MCT remain confident about their future in the sector: “We continue to believe that tidal energy will play an important future role in delivering the U.K.’s low-carbon economy and creating long-term sustainable jobs.” Siemens spokesperson Siemens have other projects in their sights, including the recently allocated project site off Portland Bill, Dorset.
To find out more click here.
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 Pembrokeshire and south west England forge marine energy partnership Pembrokeshire and the South West MEP have signed a collaboration agreement outlining a commitment to work together in the marine energy sector. The agreement, signed in July, builds on the strong relationship already established between the two regions and will increase business opportunities in the growing marine energy sector. Areas of collaboration that have been identified include encouraging business networking and collaboration, supply chain and skills development, research programme development and sharing best practise in areas of planning, environmental and stakeholder engagement.
The two regions will also be working together following the creation of The Crown Estate Demonstration Zones off the coast of the south west and Pembrokeshire, to be managed by Wave Hub. “The South West is a natural partner for Pembrokeshire with the two areas combined offering excellent energy resource, unrivalled port infrastructure, skills, support services and grid opportunities creating a Celtic Sea marine energy Hub moving the two regions towards a new green low carbon economy” – Tonia Forsyth, Marine Energy Pembrokeshire
To find out more click here.
First tidal device unveiled in Wales Wales’ first full-scale tidal energy generator has been unveiled this August at Pembroke Port, ahead of its deployment later this year in Ramsey Sound. The device, the DeltaStream, has been developed by Cardiffbased tidal stream company Tidal Energy Limited and will be installed in Ramsey Sound. It is the first private marine project to be fully developed in Wales, having secured all the required planning and environmental consents together with a lease agreement from The Crown Estate. South west company KML will carry out the installation of the device, having been working with TEL throughout the project. Managing Director of Tidal Energy Ltd, Martin Murphy said, “This is a significant milestone for us as a company and for the industry as a whole. We have achieved a number of firsts with this project, including those relating to the environmental consents, the grid connection and the installation process - where the turbine and foundation are installed together. “
Read the full story here.
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 Upcoming events Please see below for a number of upcoming events. If you have an event you would like listing in a future newsletter please contact [email protected] • Opportunity knocks- 1 October, Falmouth, UK • Ocean Energy Europe- 1 October, Paris, France • Bristol Tidal Energy Forum- 14 October, Bristol, UK • Regen SW House of Commons Members’ Reception- 22 October. London, UK • International Conference on Ocean Energy – 46 November 2014, Nova Scotia, Canada • Renewable UK Annual Conference - 11-13 November 2014, Manchester, UK • Renewable Futures and Green Energy Awards – 25 November 2014, Bath, UK As in previous years we are looking to attend All Energy, with a pavilion full of south west companies. If you would like to find out more about how you can get involved please contact [email protected]
Useful documents • Wave Hub Client Summary 2014 • Bristol Channel Balanced Technology Approach • South West Marine Energy Park Prospectus • Offshore and marine energy supply chain directory • Bristol City Region ocean energy • Regen SW Progress Report 2014 • Renewable UK Wave and tidal energy in the UK, 2013
South West MEP programme to support marine businesses The Peninsula and Plymouth City Deal Regional Growth Fund has contributed some funding to support the work of the MEP programme. As part of this we are able to offer business development support for peninsula based companies or new companies who wish to establish themselves in the region. As part of this we shall be running two free workshops in the autumn of 2014, focussing on environmental and financing issues surrounding marine energy.
If you wish to find out more about how we could support your organisation or would like to attend a workshop please email [email protected]
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
Rather less positive is the news that Siemens MCT has put their Skerries Project on hold and that the Celtic Array wind farm has joined the growing list of cancelled projects . So it continues to be a mixed picture as the industry grapples with the issues of finance, technology risk, grid, timing and uncertainty. Lets hope that fortune continues to favour the brave! Johnny Gowdy
Photos courtesy of Malcolm Nimmo
Political change In the cabinet reshuffle, Energy and Climate Change Minister Greg Barker has stepped down to be replaced by Amber Rudd, MP for Hastings and Rye. We are very grateful for all the support that Greg Barker has given to the marine energy industry, including his support for the creation of the SW MEP and look forward to working with Amber Rudd to continue this work. The government has announced that the first allocation round for Contracts for Difference will open on 14th October and has indicated that £155 million is in the pot for less established technologies which includes Offshore Wind, Wave and Tidal. It’s going to be interesting to see how many projects apply for the CfD first time around – certainly we expect several wind projects to be vying for the limited funding available, but it is less clear whether any wave and tidal projects will throw their hats into the CfD ring while the better understood RO scheme is still running. A big week for our friends north of the border but what could Scottish Independence mean for marine energy? Suffice to say we live in interesting times! In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 First device deployed at Wave Hub Seatricity have become the first device developer to deploy at the Wave Hub site off Hayle. The device, the Oceanus 2, was towed from Falmouth and deployed at the site earlier this summer.
“Seatricity’s deployment is an important milestone for Wave Hub. We are particularly pleased to see them drawing on the excellent skills and expertise we have available in the local supply chain, which is an important part of Cornwall’s attraction to the offshore renewable energy industry.” – Claire Gibson, Wave Hub Managing Director
The deployment is a moment of celebration for all involved in the marine energy sector in the south west, and whilst there were concerns that the site was too far ahead of the industry, Wave Hub is now looking like a shrewd investment that is creating jobs locally and supporting development of a new UK industry. Read more here.
Severn Subsea Technologies Redruth-based, Severn Subsea Technologies (SST), part of the Severn Glocon Group, has developed an integrated telemetry and control system for wave power company Seatricity’s Oceanus 2 wave device, now moored at the Cornish Wave Hub. The SST system will enable researchers to correlate wave movement with power generated, and thus optimise power generating conditions offshore. SST has designed and manufactured the valve gear, control, power and communications systems mounted on the buoy and at a shore-based location at the St Ives Coast Watch Facility, and SST’s Redruth headquarters. Mechanically, the telemetry and control system comprises an electrically actuated control valve that can be modulated to vary the pumped water pressure as the wave height changes. SST showcased their systems at a networking event for local companies, attended by George Eustice, MP for Redruth, Camborne and Hayle. Companies from across the south west were able to highlight their outstanding work in the sector. To find out more about the technology click here or the networking event click here. In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 GoBe reinforce their wave & tidal offering GoBe Consultants, a south west strategic environmental planning consultancy specialising in the marine sector, are delighted to welcome marine renewables expert Nikki Meek to their team. With more than 13 years of development experience in the marine renewables sector, having worked as a developer and a service provider, Nikki brings a wealth of knowledge and capabilities to augment the services offered by GoBe. Nikki previously worked at Orecon and KML. GoBe Consultants are a leading strategic and environmental planning consultancy specialising in the marine sector and look to expand their extensive offshore wind portfolio into the wave and tidal sector. Find out more here.
PLAT-O testing Sustainable Marine Energy (SME), an Isle of Wight based marine engineering company, have been developing a systems integration platform for tidal energy converters that facilitates low risk, low cost installation and maintenance access. The platform, PLAT-O, is undergoing testing in the waters of Yarmouth Harbour. The anchoring system has been successfully installed at the site and PLAT-O is being prepared for the next phase of testing at the end of the month.
Find out more here.
7th Bristol Tidal Energy Forum
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 The Crown Estate announces opportunities for wave and tidal projects The Crown Estate have announced a number of new Demonstration Zones for the deployment of wave tidal energy projects, which will further strengthen the south wests leading position in the marine energy industry. The new south west demonstration zones are for tidal energy off the coast of North Devon and for wave energy off North Cornwall. In addition a new demonstration zone for wave energy has been identified off the South Wales coast of Pembrokeshire. Significantly all three demonstration zones will be managed by Wave Hub Ltd, the current managers of the Wave Hub site off Cornwall. Wave Hub Ltd will be working closely with local partners including North Devon Council and Torridge District Council. For more information about these zones please contact [email protected] In addition to the six new Demonstration Zones, five new wave and tidal project leases have been agreed, each site with the potential to deliver a project of 10-30 MW. Significantly, a project site off Portland Bill has been allocated to Bristol based Siemens Marine Current Turbines.
Tidal range leasing round announced The Crown Estate have announced a leasing round for tidal range projects, offering developers the opportunity to secure seabed rights within areas identified within DECC’s Offshore Energy Strategic Environmental Assessment 2, 2011. This includes areas in the Bristol Channel amongst other areas in south west and south Wales waters though excludes the inner Severn Estuary. The timing of this leasing round is such that a lease could be in place to support the Swansea Bay tidal lagoon project, which is currently progressing through planning. This all makes for positive news for a growing interest in tidal lagoons though the next piece of the puzzle, the level of support offered by government under the CfD mechanism, is still unknown. There is currently no allocation for tidal range in the CfD budget. If you would like to request information about the leasing round please email [email protected]
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 £50m for MeyGen Project Atlantis Resource Corporations have raised £50 million to finance the first stage of the MeyGen Project, a 398MW tidal array in Pentland Firth. The funding syndicate responsible includes Department of Energy and Climate Change, Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and The Crown Estate, Atlantis Resources Ltd, a leading tidal developer with their design office based in Bristol, will use the funding for the installation of 4 x 1.5MW turbines and the construction of the onshore infrastructure. Three turbines will be supplied by project partners Andritz Hydro Hammerfest and the fourth will be a Lockheed Martin designed turbine supplied by Atlantis. Having signed a lease with The Crown Estate on 11 September 204, Construction is expected to commence towards the end of 2014 with first power to grid expected in 2016. To find out more click here.
DP success for Mojo Maritime Mojo Maritime’s HF4 vessel has demonstrated ‘stunning’ DP (Dynamic Positioning) performance and manoeuvring characteristics based on results of simulations recently undertaken. Falmouth based Mojo Maritime has concluded the design of the advanced DP system in collaboration with GE and Voith Turbo and it has been tested in DP simulations and shiphandling simulators respectively. These systems provide an accurate model of vessel DP and handling capability. The target was to develop a vessel with the ability to hold station to a tight footprint in currents of up to 10 knots- this dramatically exceeds the capabilities of any vessels currently on the market, thereby providing major risk and cost reductions across a range of industries and operations. To find out more click here
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 Marine energy industry welcomes £1m funding for composites technology innovation The industry has welcomed news of new funding allocated by the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership, to support innovation in composite technology for the marine energy sector. The £1 million fund has been allocated to support Bristol’s growing marine energy sector as part of an £86 million Local Growth Deal that has been awarded to the West of England (LEP). The funding has been earmarked for composite test facilities, reliability/materials studies and manufacturing processes. The SWMEP is working with industry and stakeholders to develop a detailed plan for how the funding will be spent. For more information click here.
Dockyard developments Following the city deal designation of Plymouth earlier this year, the South Yard area of Devonport Dockyard (marked Area 5) is being developed to create a Marine Industries Production Campus (MIPC). The design of the development is currently under consultation and companies interested in finding out more or responding to the consultation should contact Regen SW.
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 10,000 “future jobs” lost in demise of Celtic Array The offshore wind sector suffered another knock earlier this summer, when plans for Europe's largest offshore wind farm were scrapped. The Celtic Array, a 4.2GW farm planned for the west coast of the UK, was cancelled by development partners Centrica and DONG Energy, citing technical challenges of ground conditions as the reason, the same reasons cited by Atlantic Array developer, RWE, when this project met the same fate last November.
Projects in Planning A number of large-scale offshore energy projects, planned for the south west are currently at various stages in the planning system, as per the Planning Act 2008. From accepting an application to making a decision, the whole process lasts approximately 15 months. Navitus Bay , offshore wind farm, off the coast of Dorset – pre examination stage. This stage lasts 3 months, before entering the examination stage and allows registered parties to attend a preliminary meeting with the Inspector. This stage will end in October. Tidal Lagoon Swansea Bay – examination stage. During this stage, interested parties are invited to provide more details of their views in writing. This stage lasts 6 months and will close on 10/12/2014. For more information on the planning process, click here.
The demise of the Celtic Array, coupled with that of the Atlantic Array, leaves the west coast of the UK with no Round 3 offshore wind projects and a dwindling Round 2 pipeline of just 2.6GW left to build. To find out more, read Regen SW’s press release here.
Plans for MCT Skerries project suspended Siemens Marine Current Turbines have suspended work on their 10MW tidal array in the Skerries, Wales. The project had been hit by delays and timescales had slipped beyond agreed deadlines, which reportedly lead to the withdrawal of £10million Marine Energy Array Demonstrator funding by DECC. However, Siemens MCT remain confident about their future in the sector: “We continue to believe that tidal energy will play an important future role in delivering the U.K.’s low-carbon economy and creating long-term sustainable jobs.” Siemens spokesperson Siemens have other projects in their sights, including the recently allocated project site off Portland Bill, Dorset.
To find out more click here.
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 Pembrokeshire and south west England forge marine energy partnership Pembrokeshire and the South West MEP have signed a collaboration agreement outlining a commitment to work together in the marine energy sector. The agreement, signed in July, builds on the strong relationship already established between the two regions and will increase business opportunities in the growing marine energy sector. Areas of collaboration that have been identified include encouraging business networking and collaboration, supply chain and skills development, research programme development and sharing best practise in areas of planning, environmental and stakeholder engagement.
The two regions will also be working together following the creation of The Crown Estate Demonstration Zones off the coast of the south west and Pembrokeshire, to be managed by Wave Hub. “The South West is a natural partner for Pembrokeshire with the two areas combined offering excellent energy resource, unrivalled port infrastructure, skills, support services and grid opportunities creating a Celtic Sea marine energy Hub moving the two regions towards a new green low carbon economy” – Tonia Forsyth, Marine Energy Pembrokeshire
To find out more click here.
First tidal device unveiled in Wales Wales’ first full-scale tidal energy generator has been unveiled this August at Pembroke Port, ahead of its deployment later this year in Ramsey Sound. The device, the DeltaStream, has been developed by Cardiffbased tidal stream company Tidal Energy Limited and will be installed in Ramsey Sound. It is the first private marine project to be fully developed in Wales, having secured all the required planning and environmental consents together with a lease agreement from The Crown Estate. South west company KML will carry out the installation of the device, having been working with TEL throughout the project. Managing Director of Tidal Energy Ltd, Martin Murphy said, “This is a significant milestone for us as a company and for the industry as a whole. We have achieved a number of firsts with this project, including those relating to the environmental consents, the grid connection and the installation process - where the turbine and foundation are installed together. “
Read the full story here.
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
South West Marine Energy Park September 2014 Upcoming events Please see below for a number of upcoming events. If you have an event you would like listing in a future newsletter please contact [email protected] • Opportunity knocks- 1 October, Falmouth, UK • Ocean Energy Europe- 1 October, Paris, France • Bristol Tidal Energy Forum- 14 October, Bristol, UK • Regen SW House of Commons Members’ Reception- 22 October. London, UK • International Conference on Ocean Energy – 46 November 2014, Nova Scotia, Canada • Renewable UK Annual Conference - 11-13 November 2014, Manchester, UK • Renewable Futures and Green Energy Awards – 25 November 2014, Bath, UK As in previous years we are looking to attend All Energy, with a pavilion full of south west companies. If you would like to find out more about how you can get involved please contact [email protected]
Useful documents • Wave Hub Client Summary 2014 • Bristol Channel Balanced Technology Approach • South West Marine Energy Park Prospectus • Offshore and marine energy supply chain directory • Bristol City Region ocean energy • Regen SW Progress Report 2014 • Renewable UK Wave and tidal energy in the UK, 2013
South West MEP programme to support marine businesses The Peninsula and Plymouth City Deal Regional Growth Fund has contributed some funding to support the work of the MEP programme. As part of this we are able to offer business development support for peninsula based companies or new companies who wish to establish themselves in the region. As part of this we shall be running two free workshops in the autumn of 2014, focussing on environmental and financing issues surrounding marine energy.
If you wish to find out more about how we could support your organisation or would like to attend a workshop please email [email protected]
In future editions of this newsletter we would like to include editorials and interviews from other members of the partnership. Please email Kerry on [email protected]
