East Coast Oil and Gas Engineering (EC-OG) has completed the testing program for its Subsea Power Hub hybrid unit at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in Orkney.
The device will be returned to EC-OG’s workshop facility in Aberdeenshire where a full post-test inspection and detailed performance analysis will be completed.
EC-OG said its hybrid-based ocean current energy conversion system with integrated energy storage ‘fully satisfied and exceeded’ the test objectives after eight months of operation at EMEC.
Learnings from the Subsea Power Hub sea trial will be fed back to the development program, allowing EC-OG to optimize the system design in preparation for a further field trial of the device in the North Sea, which will lead to full system commercialization, the company said.
Robert Cowman , EC-OG Engineering Director, said: “We have been patiently waiting to gather final data from this long-term trial. We’re excited to get our hands on the Subsea Power Hub and learn everything we can from this extensive test program.”
The system was installed at Shapinsay Sound in Orkney within EMEC in April 2017.