Wave

Wave - introduction

Around 10% of Europe’s total wave resource flows in the seas surrounding the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. Reports to the Scottish Government calculate some 14gigawatts of recoverable energy lying off the area’s western and northern flanks. This potential resource has drawn world leading wave energy device developers to the area.

Pioneer Development

A shoreline wave energy converter has been in place on the coast of Islay since 2000. The Limpet (Land Installed Marine powered Energy Transformer) produces power for the national grid using an oscillating water column technology. Inverness-based developers Wavegen are a subsidiary of Voith Hydro, a major international player in hydro power equipment.

Similar technology may also be deployed off the coast of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides in a joint development with RWE npower renewables. Since the Scottish Government granted consent for the project, at Siadar Bay, in January 2009 an environmental assessment of the site and adjacent areas has been underway, whilst the commercial partners fine-tune the technology and site engineering.

The proposed project would be located 350 metres offshore and, by generating up to four megawatts (MW) of power, could provide for the average annual electricity requirements of some 1,500 households, or 20% of homes on Lewis and Harris.

Wavegen are working on other applications for applying wave energy such as providing high-pressure inlet water to desalination plants in arid countries where drinking water is scarce and using electricity generated by wave energy to produce hydrogen for combustion or fuel cells energy.

The European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC)

A key facility in the advancement of wave energy technology research and development is EMEC, which officially opened its wave testing site and facilities in 2004. A number of developers have made use of the centre to test commercial-scale prototype devices in vigorous sea conditions and to generate 'grid quality' electricity. The site, at Billia Croo on the Atlantic coast of Orkney’s West mainland, experiences wave heights of up to 14 metres.

Pelamis Wave Power (PWP), an Edinburgh-based wave energy device developer, was first to make use of EMEC's facilities and has since has sold some of the first generation devices (Pelamis P1) to a Portuguese consortium building the world's first commercial wave-farm. Supply chain links in the Highlands and Islands are strong, with Shetland-based Delta Marine contracted to deploy the first Pelamis device at EMEC in 2004, and the Arnish Yard in Lewis involved in the manufacture of three later devices.

In 2009, leading UK renewable generators E.ON announced plans to buy, install and test a wave power device at EMEC. Pelamis Wave Power will provide E.ON with a Pelamis P2 device which, at 180 metres, is almost 40% longer than the P1.

EMEC also hosts various research projects to monitor marine activities and conditions, including a project carried out on its behalf by the International Centre for Island Technology (ICIT), also based in Orkney. ICIT analyses the monthly MetOcean data for Billia Croo and developers are given access to the results to help assess and develop the performance of devices against the prevailing conditions.

Harnessing Local Expertise

Aquamarine, another Edinburgh-based company, has made extensive use of EMEC’s facilities and also the expertise of 27 local contractors to deploy its Oyster wave energy device there in 2009.

In addition to seven Aquamarine staff directly employed in Orkney, more than 70 people from both sides of the Pentland Firth provided support. Many were from specialist companies in both Caithness and Orkney with the expertise to help get Oyster into the water for its first sea trials.

Isleburn, a Ross-shire engineering company, manufactured the Oyster device at its Nigg base, requiring up to 60 skilled personnel.

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