TSB fund to speed wave and tidal energy innovation 28 January 2011

Three R&D projects aimed at developing wave and tidal stream power plants of the future are set to benefit from government investment of more than £2.5 million.

The Technology Strategy Board money is destined to fund pre-commercial, full scale devices installed and operating in the sea, and the organisations benefitting are Bauer Renewables, Pelamis Wave Power and Marine Current Turbines.

Bauer plans to design, manufacture and test novel seabed drilling technology for the installation of underwater device foundations, aiming to reduce the cost of installation and deployment of tidal energy devices.

The Pelamis-led project will test two P2 machines in an array, for the first time, to demonstrate survivability, reliability, operability, maintainability and energy yield.

Marine Current Turbines says it will research the impact of tidal arrays on the marine environment, through studies of its SeaGen device at Strangford Lough in Northern Ireland.

Iain Gray, chief executive of the Technology Strategy Board, says: "The projects will address a number of important technological challenges, including reducing the effect of the technologies on the environment and making the cost of wave and tidal stream energy production more competitive with other renewable energy sources."

And he adds: "The UK is well placed to exploit wave and tidal stream energy resources, and this kind of technology will be an important part of the renewable energy mix needed in the future."

The total value of the R&D, including contributions from all participating companies, will be over £9 million. Seven British companies and three universities are involved in the projects.

Brian Tinham

Related Companies
Marine Current Turbines Ltd
Pelamis Wave Power

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