Carnegie Wave Energy has created a base in Cornwall having secured a berth at Wave Hub and due to the region’s infrastructure, supply chain and suitability for the deployment of the company’s CETO 6 wave technology.
Following research and development in Australia, Carnegie is bringing the CETO solution to the UK for pre-commercial testing. Wave Hub offers Carnegie direct grid access with a capacity of 30-48 MW and an on-facility substation. The project has already started, with construction scheduled to start in 2017 and first power by 2018.
CETO harnesses renewable energy present in the ocean’s waves and converts it into zero-emission electricity and zero-emission desalinated water. The CETO system is differentiated from other wave energy devices as it operates under water where it is protected from large storms and invisible from the shore.
Carnegie is currently located at the Pool Innovation Centre and plans to move into the Hayle Marine Business Park following its completion later in 2015.
Tim Sawyer , Business Development Manager, Carnegie added: “Carnegie has invested over £60m million in the development of the CETO technology and have completed extensive R&D at our private Wave Energy Research Facility and commercial scale in-ocean testing at Garden Island, Western Australia. More significantly we have now reached a significant milestone in its ground breaking Perth Wave Energy Project, with the CETO 5 units reaching 10,000 hours of cumulative, continuous operation off the Western Australian coast. To bridge the gap between pre-commercial development and commercial roll-out we required a facility that offers supporting infrastructure, streamlines approvals and direct access to the grid and Wave Hub clearly meets these requirements. We have already started to work with Cornwall’s extensive supply chain as we seek to move the project forward. We anticipate employing 10 UK employees over the next 12-18 months and expand as we deliver a subsequent commercial project. We believe the facility will provide an invaluable testing ground for our solution, which will enable us to take CETO 6 to market as a tried and tested environmentally friendly power generation solution.”