Since 2006, Vattenfall AB R&D Projects has been investigating the potential for ocean energy to offer a major new renewable energy source. In 2009 Vattenfall established a formal ocean energy programme.
Now – six years later – a first annual report has been created for the Ocean Energy Development Programme (OEDP). The report describes 2011’s achievements of the OEDP, and additionally provides a comprehensive overview of Vattenfall’s position in the field of ocean energy.
In the report the company presents the status of the ocean energy opportunity, and why and how it has decided to focus on Scotland as the leading market for early projects. It introduces Pelamis – the ocean energy technology that it is pursuing. Also, there is a part about its first 10MW wave farm project in Shetland, using this technology.
Three common themes are obvious in the report, that Vatetenfall has adopted in its strategy for ocean R&D: value, partners and companies. In 2012 it will continue to intensively pursue these themes. For the coming year, it expects to have enough confidence in its technical evaluations and industrial partnerships to order the first 1MW machine for deployment in Orkney, Scotland in 2014.
This would provide the company with the competence and confidence to consider ordering machines for its 10MW farm in 2016, which in turn might allow to consider more than 40MW by 2018, when Vattenfall expects several technologies to be ready and proven.
[mappress]
Offshore WIND staff, May 21, 2012; Image: Vattenfall