Marine Power Systems (MPS) has signed up to demonstrate a multi-MW wave energy array at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in Orkney, Scotland.
The Swansea-based marine energy developer will bring its first commercial scale array demonstration to two berths at EMEC’s Billia Croo wave test site, off the west coast of Orkney, in 2025-2026.
MPS’s PelaGen wave energy converter (WEC) design has a wave energy capture mechanism enabling energy to be harnessed during the heave and surge of a wave.
Each device is designed to capture over a megawatt of power.
The PelaGen WECs will be deployed on MPS’s modular floating platform, PelaFlex.
Based on a tetrahedral design to provide enhanced stability, the platform has a low overall steel mass with 10 primary, and four distinct, parts.
PelaFlex has been designed to “deliver low cost across the entire product lifecycle”.
The rigorous sea conditions and grid connection at EMEC’s Billia Croo test site will enable MPS to test its device in seas with some of the highest wave energy potential in Europe while exporting any electricity produced during the demonstration programme into the UK grid.
Gareth Stockman, CEO at Marine Power Services, said: “We are thrilled to be demonstrating our first pre-commercial array at EMEC.
“The project represents another significant step forward for the business and our progress towards market readiness.
“This array demonstration will support the ongoing development of our technology and its functionality to ensure that the commercial arrays delivered at increasing scale represent the most robust, reliable and cost-effective devices on the market.
“The project will also deliver further research and development around manufacturing and the real-world deployment of our technology at commercial scale.”
Rob Flynn, Commercial Manager for EMEC, added: “Marine Power Systems’ approach to technology development is rigorous and impressive, and we are delighted to support the next stage of their development with this pre-commercial project.
“These are the type of projects which the wave energy sector needs to undertake to show that it can deliver clean renewable energy to the electrical grid and make a significant contribution to net-zero.”