The FOREST project has launched with €4m backing from the European Commission under Horizon Europe to advance ocean energy system technologies, according to the European Marine Energy Centre.
The three-year initiative brings together eight partners from the UK, Portugal, Spain and Sweden to develop subsea components and digital systems to improve durability, reliability and efficiency in ocean energy arrays.
EMEC managing director Matthew Finn said the collaboration “marks a major step forward for ocean energy” and aims to “advance the reliability and efficiency of the ancillary systems crucial for ocean energy array deployments and help drive down costs”.
FOREST will deliver three core innovations, including 33kV dynamic cables from SubConnected, a subsea quick-connector system developed by Apollo, and an optical measurement platform with AI and machine learning from CENER and Intelligent Plant.
The technologies will be tested at EMEC’s wave and tidal sites in Orkney, with Bureau Veritas ensuring certification compliance.
Scotland’s energy secretary Gillian Martin said the project would “help to catalyse the advancement of the renewable marine energy sector” and highlighted Scotland’s leadership in marine innovation.
Partners include EMEC, Indeximate, Intelligent Plant, Bureau Veritas and Apollo in the UK, WavEC Offshore Renewables in Portugal, CENER in Spain and SubConnected in Sweden.