Belgian developer Laminaria is preparing for the full-scale deployment of its 200kW wave energy converter (WEC) having completed tank testing of a 1/30th scale device.
The company said the tests at the Coastal, Ocean and Sediment Transport laboratory at Plymouth University demonstrated “survivability in extreme sea states”.
The tests produced the equivalent of 16-metre wave heights.
Production of the full-scale version of the WEC is now underway and is scheduled to be completed by April, the company said.
The full-scale WEC will be deployed at the European Marine Energy Centre at Billia Croo in Orkney later this year.
The latest tests build on initial tank tests in 2016 and were supported by MaRINET2, which supports marine energy developers in accessing a range of testing facilities.
Laminaria chief executive Steven Nauwelaerts said: “With the completion of the latest tank testing we are confident our WEC will be able to handle the challenging wave resource at EMEC and more.”
Image: Pexels
Test success for Belgian wave
By EBS