Wave and tidal energy: New report says consistent investment from Government could save billions long-term
This major report, funded by the Supergen Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Hub, an organisation that brings together 10 leading UK universities, has outlined that if the UK government actively collaborates with other European nations, while at the same time investing around £325 million between now and 2050 on targeted technology innovation programmes, then the overall cost of delivering 6GW of tidal stream energy could be reduced from £18.3 billion to £3.3 billion.
Similarly, if UK government invests around £180 million on the wave sector, in the same targeted and collaborative manner, the cost of delivering 6GW will be reduced from £20.5 billion to £3 billion.
Other underpinning SuperGen reports have indicated that achieving the deployment of at least 6GW of wave and at least 6GW of tidal stream could add between £11 billion and £41 billion to the UK economy and inject a number of skilled jobs into coastal communities, depending on how much of the supply chain is retained in the UK. It is also estimated that this deployment could help to reduce the cost of balancing supply and demand across the national grid by up to £1 billion every year. These growing sectors also have the potential to strengthen domestic energy security by providing energy at times of the year when solar and wind may not be available.
As outlined by Professor Henry Jeffrey, head of the Policy and Innovation Group who said: “It is clear from this report that both wave and tidal stream have a key role to play in the UK achieving its Net Zero targets and our Just Transition commitments, while at the same time ensuring that the UK continues to have access to a secure, reliable supply of energy. It has also shown that sustained market pull policy, coupled with the optimal balance of innovation funding, will be vital for the wider sector to achieve its full potential and enable it to unlock a range of socioeconomic, energy system and environmental benefits.”
Ongoing support
However, this report also makes clear that the role of wave and tidal stream in any future energy mix is highly reliant on continued and consistent financial and policy-based support for innovation programmes across the sector. In order to achieve the benefits that have been outlined, the wave and tidal stream sector will require a well-managed and well-funded, collaborative innovation program.
Wave Energy Scotland, formed in 2014 at the request of the Scottish Government, aims to ensure that Scotland maintains its position as one of the leading countries in the development and deployment of marine energy. With an excellent track record of having committed over £50 million to 300 separate organisations, Wave Energy Scotland has established itself at the forefront of technology innovation for the marine sector. Through its competitive procurement programme, Wave Energy Scotland has supported a range of projects focussed on key systems and sub-systems, helping to produce reliable technology that progresses from porotype stage to full ocean deployment. This approach has culminated in the successful deployment of Mocean Energy and AWS Ocean Energy wave energy converters off the coast of Orkney in 2022.
Wave Energy Scotland is also keen to promote collaboration between the UK and European partners through the piloting of its competitive procurement programme, EuropeWave that brings together 3 European partners – WES, Ocean Energy Europe and the Basque Energy Agency.
Collaboration
This positive decision is reflected by the findings in the Policy and Innovation Groups report, which outlines how ensuring effective collaboration between individual European countries wave and tidal stream programs can ensure that research isn’t duplicated and overall cost is lowered.
Tim Hurst, Managing Director of Wave Energy Scotland said: “The Policy and Innovation Group report outlines the mechanisms required to continue technology development and market support mechanisms to accelerate wave and tidal energy. The WES programmes to date represent an important step in funding early to mid-stage technology on the path to larger scale and utility focussed development of wave energy generation.”
It is clear from the series of reports released via Supergen that the UK has a huge opportunity to realise the forecasted deployment of 12GW of ocean energy, which in turn can underpin skilled jobs in coastal communities, grow the national economy and contribute to both energy security and a greener, more efficient national energy system. However, this can only be achieved by providing sustained investment to market pull policies that are underpinned by a rigorous and comprehensive innovation support program, of which WES is a prime example. Should this be achieved the UK has a real opportunity to reach Net Zero, sustain a Just Transition and maintain our energy security, while at the same time creating a truly world-leading wave and tidal stream energy sector.
Find out more at https://www.waveenergyscotland.co.uk/ or read more about the key players below.
The Policy and Innovation Group (P&IG)
The Policy and Innovation Group exists within the Institute for Energy Systems (IES), one of the six research institutes within the School of Engineering, at the University of Edinburgh. The group combines expertise on offshore energy technologies, energy system organisations and institutions, and the wider policy and regulatory context for energy. The P&IG applies a range of quantitative and qualitative research tools and methods that includes innovation systems, energy system modelling and scenarios, supply chain capabilities, and transitions management. The P&IG has extensive experience of delivering strategy roadmaps and evidence-based policy for the offshore energy sectors, public and private investment and government departments.
The SuperGen ORE Hub
The Supergen ORE Hub is a £9 Million Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) funded programme which brings together academia, industry, policy makers and the general public to support and accelerate the development of offshore wind, wave and tidal technology for the benefit of society. The Hub is led by the University of Plymouth, and includes Co-Directors from the Universities of Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Exeter, Hull, Manchester, Oxford, Southampton, Strathclyde, and Warwick. The Supergen ORE Hub is one of three Supergen Hubs and two Supergen Network+ created by the EPSRC to deliver strategic and coordinated research on Sustainable Power Generation and supply.
Wave Energy Scotland
Wave Energy Scotland (WES) is driving the search for innovative solutions to the technical challenges facing the wave energy sector. Through our competitive procurement programme, we support a range of projects focused on the key systems and sub-systems of Wave Energy Converters. The aim is to produce reliable technology which will result in cost-effective wave energy generation.
WES was formed in 2014 at the request of the Scottish Government and is a subsidiary of Highlands and Islands Enterprise. The aim of WES is to ensure that Scotland maintains a leading role in the development of marine energy.
Through our work, we have funded 132 contracts, committed £50m and been involved with 300 separate organisations, across 18 different countries.
The University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh is one of the largest and most successful universities in the UK with an international reputation as a centre of academic excellence. In the most recent Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021, the University of Edinburgh was ranked 4th in the UK based on the quality and breadth of its research - known as research power - and is Scotland’s top ranked institution. The University has been at the forefront of renewable and marine energy conversion research for 45 years.