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The South West is the only region with all offshore renewable energy resources (wave, wind, tidal and even high solar!) close to major ports and infrastructure. The Cluster has several sites to test and deploy wave, tidal and wind devices. The industry is supported by a strong network of developers and an extensive supply-chain working with 22 research Institutions to develop new technology and devices. Recent investment in floating offshore wind in the Celtic Sea is set to create a new wave of investment in the South West with significant supply chain opportunity.
Wave Hub is the largest and most advanced grid-connected site for testing and developing wave energy devices and related components, but also with the capacity to host floating offshore wind technologies. Located 16km offshore from Hayle in the eastern extremes of the Atlantic Ocean.
The site offers:
The university offers The South West Moorings Test Facility, in Cornwall, enables a thorough understanding of mooring in real wave, wind, current and tidal conditions, improving computer simulation models and robust design procedures, which allow the design of reliable, yet economic mooring systems
Also based in Cornwall, FaBTest is an award-winning, pre-consented, 2.8km² test area situated within Falmouth harbour, between three and five kilometres offshore in Falmouth Bay. This nursery facility enables device developers to test components, concepts or full scale devices in a moderate wave climate, whilst giving excellent accessibility to the device and benefiting from extensive nearby port infrastructure at A&P Dockyard.
A core consortium member of the UK Centre for Marine Energy Research, the UK’s leading network for academic research collaboration, addressing the challenges facing the marine energy community. Based at the University’s Cornwall campus, the group boasts world-leading research facilities, including a state of the art power lab with numerical and realtime simulation capabilities. The Dynamic Marine Component test facility tests full-scale components and replicates the forces and motions that components are subjected to in marine applications.
The lead organisation on Supergen, a consortium bringing together the UK’s expertise in Offshore Renewables. The COAST research group has particular strengths in physical and numerical modelling of marine renewable energy devices, supported by the state-of-the-art COAST Lab facilities. The University is also a key partner in the Partnership for Research in Marine Renewable Energy, a network of world-class research institutions, which undertake research and development to address challenges facing the marine renewable energy industry at regional, national and international levels.
Inyanga Marine are specialists in delivery of offshore renewable projects, providing cost effective, competent and reliable offshore management and consultancy services. Their experienced team have served many of the tidal sectors major developers over the last decade as well as wave and offshore wind.
Based in Cornwall, LDD operates an extensive spread of piling apparatus to provide safe and effective moorings for offshore equipment. LDD has the knowledge and experience to develop and operate drills and other piling equipment from floating installation vessels or remotely on the seabed.
James Fisher Marine Services, of Cornwall, specialises in project management, engineering and consultancy services for the marine renewable energy industry. The experienced team of Analysts, Engineers, Naval Architects and Master Mariners has built a strong reputation in offshore wind, wave and tidal energy. James Fisher Marine Services has developed ‘Mermaid’, a unique planning and risk optimisation tool, which models operations down to the minute, outpacing traditional exceedence analysis. It also understands that the weather varies across your operation, outsmarting simple weather windowing.
NORCO GRP of Dorset specialise in GRP / Composite mouldings for end-users all over the world. Components are manufactured to demanding specifi cations, CAD models and laminate schedules, and usually require selection of approved materials. Products include wind and tidal turbine blades up to 50m, prototype scale tidal and wind energy blades in infusion, hydro power venturis, rotors, cowlings, and enclosures and composite wave devices and structures.
PARTRAC Ltd is a leading provider of Metocean, Geoscience, Survey and Consulting services, supporting the offshore wind, marine renewable, dredging, marine construction and oil and gas industries in the UK and Europe.