Swedish wave energy developer CorPower Ocean has completed the foundation installation and the delivery of its C3 wave energy converter to Scotland.
Orkney-based marine operator Leask Marine conducted the installation operation of a bottom-based foundation module at the European Marine Energy Centre’s (EMEC) Scapa Flow site.
The module provides force reference from the wave energy converter to the seabed and includes a mooring system with tidal adjustment function and tensioning capacity up to 60 tons, CorPower Ocean said.
The installation operation included the subsea attachment of the foundation frame to a pre-laid gravity base, and the laying of an umbilical cable which controls the tidal adjustment unit.
Leask Marine’s C-Odyssey multicat vessel was used for the installation, with a dive team assisting the subsea activity.
Following the dry test program in Stockholm, the CorPower C3 wave energy converter has been delivered to a workshop in Kirkwall, Orkney.
The device is currently undergoing final checks, with installation and on-site commissioning at the Scapa Flow site expected at the beginning of 2018, CorPower informed.
Robert Argo , Marine Operations Manager, CorPower, said: “We are pleased to have successfully completed this foundation install together with Leask Marine, who provided precise, reliable and safe offshore operations for this part of the project. We look forward to continuing to work closely with the Orkney supply chain over the coming months during deployment and maintenance of our resonant C3 wave energy converter.”
The design principle of CorPower’s device is inspired by the pumping principles of the human heart and offers five times more energy per ton of device compared to previously known technology, according to CorPower.
The device uses a power take-off (PTO) system that combines the high load capabilities from hydraulics with the efficiency of mechanical drive to produce power.