Wave Energy Scotland (WES) will receive a total of £14.3 million over the next thirteen months, Scottish Energy Minister Fergus Ewing announced today.
‘Wave Energy Scotland’ awarded its first contract to a group of 12 former Pelamis employees, led by former Chief Executive of Pelamis Wave Power Richard Yemm, to capture the knowledge of the Pelamis technology development path for the wider benefit of the wave energy sector.
Speaking ahead of the RenewableUK conference in Edinburgh Mr Ewing said:
“I am very pleased to offer a significant budget of over £14 million to kick start Wave Energy Scotland. This is the biggest technology development programme the wave sector has ever seen.
“We have adopted a completely new approach to funding the sector. It is one that will foster collaborative research and development and will encourage technology developers to work with large engineering companies, academics and each other to address shared challenges.”
Alex Paterson, Chief Executive of Highlands and Islands Enterprise said:
“HIE’s head of Offshore Development, Tim Hurst, has been appointed interim director of Wave Energy Scotland. Using his experience across the energy sector, coupled with expert support from the Carbon Trust and Edinburgh University, Tim is leading the development of the operating model for WES. Good progress has been made and there will be announcements shortly on the first project calls and the recruitment of core staff for WES.”
Image: RenewableUK