Extracts from the Nov-Dec 2002 edition of Renew
These extracts only represent about 25% of it

1. More Offshore Wind - and wave and tidal

England: Greenpeace, backed by TXU Energy, has been touring East Anglia promoting the Sea Wind East report, produced by AEA Technology, which claims that by 2020 25% of the UK’s electricity could be generated by 40 wind farms off the coast of East Anglia, at a cost of around £20bn. See http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/seawindeast.htm

Scotland: Canadian energy company Talisman, has proposed constructing one of the world’s biggest offshore wind farms in the inner Moray Firth - a 120-turbine 500MW project. The North Sea oil operator has begun a £250,000 feasibility study to site the 90m-high turbines in the relatively shallow waters of the Firth, from where the company said the wind farm would be ‘barely visible’ from onshore. Sadly however, the proposed 60 turbine project 5 miles out in Solway Firth has run into local opposition.

Wales: Meanwhile, National Wind Power and npower are pushing ahead with plans for the 30 turbine 90MW offshore wind farm at North Hoyle, 4-5 miles off the coast from Prestatyn and Rhyl in Wales - one of the 18 offshore wind projects the government is considering for support via capital grants. Initial local consultations have indicated overwhelming support for the project, with only 1% of those who completed a questionnaire available at two local open days objecting, 95% being in favour. Npowers ‘Juice’ green tariff scheme, which is backed by Greenpeace, allows consumers to show they support this project. In July the government gave planning consent for the project, and in Oct. it awarded it £10m from the capital grants scheme for offshore wind project. Powergens 39 turbine 80 MW project off Norfolk was also awarded £10m. More may follow in the next round of the competition, with the jackpot having been raised from £68m to £ 74 m over three rounds.

N. Ireland: Crown Estate, which owns the seas up to 12 miles out, has agreed to issue an exclusive agreement to a consortium formed by B9 Energy Offshore Developments Ltd, Renewable Energy Systems Ltd & Powergen Renewables Developments Ltd, to explore the potential for an offshore windfarm on the Tunes Plateau. The consortium has until June 2003 to secure the necessary consents.

Wave industry rises

According to the DTI, the wave energy sector is ‘poised to become a major force in renewable energy with some of the best natural conditions to be found around the North of Scotland’. Speaking at the launch of the North Sea Industries Group in Inverness back in June, Energy Minister Brian Wilson certainly piled on the rhetoric: "The Government’s renewables targets offer a fantastic opportunity to develop a thriving industry, building on traditional Scottish expertise in offshore technologies and engineering know-how. Fabrication facilities such as the Arnish yard in Stornaway can take advantage of the new opportunities available from the developing renewables market. There are strong parallels with the position of the UK’s oil & gas industry some 30 years ago. If the same concerted, strategic approach is applied to the renewables sector as was applied to oil & gas we can reap very substantial benefits for this country."

He then opened a major new testing facility for the wave energy industry. Inverness-based Wavegen have developed a sophisticated wave tank funded by the DTI.

Stingray Tested

The Stingray tidal current device is being tested in stages by its developer, the Engineering Business, based in Northumbria, supported by a £1.1m DTI grant. The first prototype, a 150kW device, was installed and tested over the summer in Yell Sound in the Shetlands. It’s a single 15 metre wide hydroplane version, chosen for simplicity, as opposed to the multiple hydroplane design that may be used for the follow up commercial versions.

Stingray can operate in up to 100m of water, and, being submerged, will not interfere with shipping. Current plans are for it to be gravity mounted (i.e. secured on the seabed by its own weight) rather than being pinned or anchored. An environmental impact study has been made of the test site and no significant problems were identified.

With the device installed on the sea bed in mid Sept, in tidal flows of up to 4 knots, first the functioning of its oscillating hydroplane system was tested and then power was transferred back to a moored barge, to which it was connected so that the whole device could be easily retrieved. At the end of the test period it was taken off for the winter. There are plans for further tests next year, possibly with the Stingray system delivering power to shore via a marine cable. And there is talk of a 3 or 5 MW pre-commercial version, with several devices linked in a wave farm- in 2003/4. See: http://www.engb.com

Tests have also been underway on a prototype of Marine Current Turbines seabed mounted Seaflow propeller device, off the coast of N. Devon at Lynmouth, and the Pelamis floating atriculated wave-snake device has also been under test. More on these exciting projects in Renew 141.

… but ARBRE dies

The UK’s flagship energy crop fuelled plant, the £35m 10 MW ARBRE wood chip fired combined cyle gas turbine in Yorkshire, has gone bust, leaving farmers with worthless SRC supply contracts. But there are hopes that another owner may step in to keep ARBRE going. Otherwise, the UK energy crop programme will be in tatters.

More in Renew 141.