The Isles of Scilly has been identified as having potential for the construction of a commercial wave park. But surfers shouldn’t get their hopes up - this is all about renewable energy, not riding the big one.
WAVE energy parks are to be set up off the coast of Britain to generate eco-friendly electricity by harnessing the power of waves.
An area to the southwest of Scilly has been selected as a possible site along with two others, one to the west of Orkney and the other to the west of the Isle of Lewis.
A Scottish company, AWS Ocean Energy, intend to test their first Archimedes Wave (AWS) machines off Orkney in 2007. Each AWS is designed to produce one megawatt of “green” energy, enough to power 2000 homes.
Of course wave power is free, but the project will not be cheap. Each machine will cost ?2.5m and there will be an expensive maintenance program. But despite a cost of up to ?250m, a 100 AWS wave park producing 100 megawatts would be pound-for-pound less expensive than an equivalent nuclear power station - without the hazardous by-products.
‘It is very early days. Any development off Scilly will be at least 5 to 10 years away and we have absolutely no clear plans at present,? Simon Turner from AWS Ocean told ScillyNews.
‘But AWS is a technology that could be acceptable out there. Visual impact is non-existent and power density is high ? three times that of our competitors ? so we will take up a third of the space for a given megawatt. This is obviously great for other stakeholders such as fishermen.”
And he added that a visit from the company may be on the cards: ‘In due course we would be very happy to come down to Scilly and tell people about AWS!?
The Government - who aim to provide 10% of the country’s electricity by renewable energy by 2010 and 20% by 2020 and are currently scraping 4% - seem enthusiastic. A spokesman from the Department of Trade and Industry has said: ‘We expect wave and tidal energy to feed into the grid in the coming years. The UK has tremendous potential.?
The Islands are suitable because they are situated near deep water. Wave power increases dramatically as the sea becomes shallower, the same principle as squirting water through a small hole.
The wave parks could generate up to 4000 jobs as well as low cost “green” energy. The initial construction could generate a sizable income for the Islands, though maintenance is most likely to be based at a mainland port.
Though each wave machine is 39 by 98 feet, the 800-ton cylinders are tethered to the seabed and will not be visible from the surface.
However, everything is not rosy in the garden. The National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations claim the parks could have a significant effect on fisheries.
But with Government backing and the ever-present threat of global warming, wave parks are likely to become more common after the 2007 pilot scheme. It is anticipated that by 2010, wave power will generate enough power to light up a number of small towns. And the Isles of Scilly may be at the forefront of this “green” revolution.
http://www.awsocean.com/ http://www.waveswing.com/home/index.html