South West electrical specialists win £1 million wave hub
contract
05 August 2009
The pioneering Wave Hub project has moved another step closer
after a £1 million contract was placed for electrical equipment
installation and commissioning to link the wave energy project to
be built next year off the coast of Cornwall with the National
Grid.
Work will be carried out by Poole-based Powermann Ltd after it
won a European-wide tender process to supply and install onshore
electrical equipment. The company specialises in high voltage power
station and sub-station projects and employs 75 people in
Dorset.
The Wave Hub project is being spearheaded by the South West RDA
(Regional Development Agency) and will create a giant
grid-connected electrical socket on the seabed off the coast of
Cornwall to enable wave energy devices to be tested on a scale not
seen before.
Earlier this month the Government announced that South West
England will become a world centre for wave and tidal energy after
the region was designated the UK's first Low Carbon Economic Area
because of its strength in marine energy. The Government is
investing £9.5 million in Wave Hub and a further £10 million to
support other marine energy projects in the South West. The total
Wave Hub project is now valued at £42 million, with funding also
secured from the ERDF (European Regional Development Fund)
Convergence Programme (£20m) and the RDA (£12.5m).
Nick Harrington, Head of Marine Energy at the South West RDA
said: "We are delighted to have Powermann on board to deliver the
onshore electrical package for Wave Hub. Now that we have reached
the stage of awarding contracts to suppliers the project is really
taking off and we look forward to shortly starting the recruitment
for a Wave Hub general manager, who will lead the operation of Wave
Hub."
With planning consent, funding and its first wave energy device
developer (Ocean Power Technologies) now all in place, installation
work on Wave Hub is likely to start in summer 2010, with the first
wave energy devices expected to be deployed in 2011.
The RDA has already placed its first equipment order with JDR
Cable Systems Ltd to manufacture the cable and hub assembly for
Wave Hub in a contract worth £7.6 million. The latest contract
award to Powermann includes the supply of transformer, electrical
switchgear and other high-voltage equipment.
Nigel Ritchie-Lilley, Engineering Manager for Powermann, said:
"Over the past 12 months we've seen a significant growth in our
work within the renewable energy sector and we are very excited
about working on our first wave energy project. As a South West
based business we're pleased to be playing a role in such a ground
breaking project that will put the region on the world stage for
the development of wave energy devices."
Ends
Notes to Editors
1. The South West RDA leads the development of a sustainable
economy, investing to unlock the region's business potential. It is
helping companies respond to the economic crisis and charts a
course for recovery. The RDA is developing or expanding initiatives
which include: establishing a Business Loan Fund; coordinating the
response to large companies in difficulty; preparing for economic
recovery.
2. Wave Hub is a major marine renewables infrastructure project
that will create an electrical 'socket' on the seabed in some 50
metres of water around 10 nautical miles off the coast of Cornwall
in South West England and connected to the National Grid via a
subsea cable. Groups of wave energy devices will be connected to
Wave Hub and float on or just below the surface of the sea to
assess how well they work and how much power they generate before
going into full commercial production. There are four berths
available at Wave Hub, each covering two square kilometres. Wave
Hub will have an initial maximum capacity of 20MW (enough
electricity to power approximately 7,000 homes) but has been
designed with the potential to scale up to 50MW in the future. The
project will be built in the summer of 2010 with the first wave
energy devices expected to be deployed in 2011.
For more information contact:
Laura Tregonning
Deborah Clark Associates
Tel: 01208 77900
Email: laura.tregonning@dca-pr.co.uk