Good natural resources

South West England is blessed with some excellent natural resources which attract companies to develop projects in the region and also to locate here:

• Wave and Tidal: one of the best Wave and Tidal resources in Europe.
• Biomass: a considerable woodland resource and also a favourable climate for growing trees.
• Wind: an excellent wind resource benefiting from sea breezes on both its north and south coast.
• Solar: receives the highest levels of solar radiation in the UK.

Strong Higher Education / Knowledge base

There are a number of world-leading University research departments working on Renewable Energy including the RDA-funded Peninsula Research Institute for Marine Renewable Energy ( www.primare.org), which is a collaboration between the University of Exeter and the University of Plymouth. With an initial pump-priming fund of over £7.3 million from Southwest Regional Development Agency (SWRDA), PRIMaRE has enhanced its intellectual research capacity through the appointment of twelve new academic staff and a major investment in capital equipment and infrastructure. 
 
PRIMaRE is directly linked to Wave Hub which will provide a unique facility to evaluate arrays of wave energy conversion devices to generate power to the National Grid system. Primare are currently focussed on the following six priority research areas:

• Resource Characterisation
• Marine Renewable Energy Systems
• Environmental and Biodiversity Impacts
• Safe Operations and Navigational Risk
• Underwater and Surface Electrical Systems
• Socio-Economic Factors

Many companies look to the region's Universities for support on research and development and also for training of staff. 
 
For further information about South West England's strengths, please visit www.energysw.com.