Carnegie Wave Energy Limited will use the grant to support the first phase of its planned 15 MW commercial wave energy project at Wave Hub in Cornwall, the world’s largest and most technologically advanced site for the testing and development of offshore renewable energy technology.
CWE is the only company in the world to have operated a grid-connected wave energy project over four seasons. The project focuses on the implementation of the 1 MW stage 1 of a planned phased scheme, for which stage 2 (planned for 2020/21) will deliver a subsequent 15 MW commercial array at the same site, offering a commercial return on investment. The project will commence immediately, with commissioning set for 2018, followed by 12 months of operations.
The £9,551,962 grant from the European Regional Development Fund, is part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and forms 65 percent of the funding for stage 1, consisting of a £14.7 million project to design, construct, install and operate a single 1 MW grid-connected CETO 6 wave energy converter device adapted to local conditions and industrialised for large-scale commercial deployment at the purpose-built Wave Hub test site in the UK.
“I am delighted that Carnegie secured the £9.55m of ERDF funding and chosen to deliver its CETO wave energy project at Wave Hub” said George Eustice, Minister of State at the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and MP for Camborne said. “Cornwall offers a cluster of academic and industrial expertise, world class test facilities, infrastructure and resources which ensures it is well-positioned to play a significant role in ecuring the UK’s continued reputation as a market leader in offshore renewables”
Carnegie’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Michael Ottaviano, added that the UK offers unique advantages for the commercialisation of CETO. The funding from ERDF is a prime example of the funding support available that is accompanied by marine energy revenue support, experienced supply chains, demonstrations sites such as Wave Hub and deep investment knowledge in the renewable energy sector. CWE is delighted to have been selected through a highly competitive process consisting of a rigorous technical and commercial assessment process.
Being able to deploy its commercial generation CETO units at Wave Hub also offers the company project expansion capability and significantly derisks and accelerates its path to commercialisation. The award of the grant is a major endorsement of CWE and its CETO technology and is representative of the company’s ability to export the technology to the world.
Cornwall has made significant investments in marine renewable energy (MRE) in recent years with the goal of securing a low-carbon future and creating a Cornwall and Isles of Scilly energy market. The region possesses world-class testing facilities, wave energy resource and an internationally recognised offshore renewables supply chain.
Carnegie has been developing its CETO wave energy technology for over 10 years, culminating the deployment and operation of a grid-connected array of three CETO 5 units in 2014/15, known as the Perth Wave Energy Project (PWEP), at Garden Island in Western Australia. The PWEP accumulated over 14,000 hours of operation and was the only known grid connected, wave energy array operation in the world in 2015. It utilised Carnegie’s 5th generation CETO technology and has been supported by grant funding from the Australian Federal and Western Australian State Governments.
The company is currently developing a follow-on pre-commercial project to design and demonstrate the next generation of CETO technology, the 1 MW CETO 6 Unit. CETO 6 offers higher rated capacity and increased efficiency which, when deployed in large commercial arrays, will ultimately deliver a levelised cost of energy competitive with offshore wind. Longer term development will continue to push costs lower below this benchmark. It is this technology that will be utilised, developed and adapted for deployment in Cornwall.
The project will be delivered locally by CWE’s UK subsidiary, CWE UK, based at Hayle Marine Renewable Business Park, with commercial and technical support from its Australian parent company and developer of the CETO wave energy technology, Carnegie Wave Energy. Delivery of the project will leverage Cornwall’s, and the UK’s, exceptional wave energy resource, marine energy revenue support, maritime industrial heritage, the world-class Wave Hub infrastructure, and active and innovative marine engineering and research sectors.
Carnegie also expects to utilise the marine energy feed in tariff available in the UK which equates to an estimated £305/MWh for the second stage of the Project. Deployment and operation of the CETO device will be within a defined berth at the pre-consented Wave Hub facility in Cornwall.
Wave Hub is a facility for pre-commercial testing of wave energy device arrays. It provides a fully grid-connected and consented wave energy site, located approximately 10 nautical miles (16km) off the north coast of Cornwall. The Wave Hub Offshore Deployment Area, which covers 8 km² of seabed, is divided into four separate berths available to lease to wave energy device developers, with a 30 MVA grid connection agreement.
This project will be able to leverage the existing design work already completed by Carnegie for the CETO 6 technology; however, further development will be required to adapt the technology for local site conditions. The project will also include engagement with and coordination of a suitable supply chain for the construction and operational phase. The successful demonstration of this project will therefore present a real opportunity to commercialise wave energy in the UK through bridging the gap between technology readiness and commercialisation.
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