July 15, 2009
South West named global leader for marine energy
 Region is UK’s first Low Carbon Economic Area
 Investment in marine renewables will top £100m
 Wave Hub gets the official go ahead
The South West of England will become a world centre for wave and tidal
energy under plans published by the UK Government today.
The region has been designated as the UK’s first Low Carbon Economic Area
because of its strength in marine energy.
The UK Government will make £19.5 million available as part of a £100 million
two-year investment programme in marine renewables being led by the South
West RDA (Regional Development Agency).
The Government investment includes £9.5 million for the RDA’s pioneering Wave
Hub project, which received the official go-ahead from the South West RDA today
and could create more than 1,800 jobs in the UK. A further £10 million has been
made available for the RDA to support other marine energy projects in the South
West.
The ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) Convergence Programme
also announced today that it will invest £20 million in Wave Hub, which will be
commissioned next summer. The first equipment orders have been placed this
week.
With government, RDA, European and private sector funding, total investment in
the South West’s marine energy programme in the next two years is expected to
top £100 million, putting the region at the forefront of this emerging global
industry.
Lord Mandelson, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, named
the South West as the UK’s first Low Carbon Economic Area at the launch of the
Government’s Low Carbon Industrial Strategy in London today. (July 15)
Stephen Peacock, Enterprise and Innovation Executive Director at the South
West RDA said: “This is about a new industry and new jobs, and the South West’s
critical role in building a greener global economy. Being identified as the UK’s first
Low Carbon Economic Area is a tremendous accolade and recognition of our
commitment to develop this unprecedented economic opportunity. We want to
forge a new industry from the seas around our shores and today’s
announcements cement our position as a global leader in wave and tidal
technologies.
“We also welcome the Low Carbon Industrial Strategy which sets out a range of
opportunities to ensure that we take advantage of a global market for low carbon
products and services that could be worth £4.3 trillion by 2015.”
The announcements mark a significant milestone in the Wave Hub project, a giant
grid-connected socket on the seabed off the coast of Cornwall for wave energy
devices to be tested on a scale not seen before. The South West RDA has today
confirmed:

Total Wave Hub project now valued at £42 million, with funding secured
from the UK Government (£9.5m), ERDF (£20m) and the RDA (£12.5m).

The project has the capacity to generate 20MW of green electricity with the
potential to be scaled up to 50MW in the future.

Legal agreements signed with leading renewable energy company Ocean
Power Technologies Limited (“OPT”) to take the first berth at Wave Hub
using its PowerBuoy wave energy converter.

JDR Cable Systems Ltd has been appointed to manufacture the 26.5 km
(16.5 mile) cable and hub assembly for Wave Hub at its new factory in
Hartlepool in a contract worth £7.6 million.

RDA research and development grant of £229,000 awarded to wave device
developer Orecon in Bodmin, Cornwall, with a view to the company coming
to Wave Hub in the future.

Contract for onshore electrical package expected to be let in the next few
weeks.

Applications being invited for the position of Wave Hub general manager,
who will lead the operation of Wave Hub.
The RDA’s Stephen Peacock added: “It’s all systems go for Wave Hub. We have
our consent, our funding, and our first developer signed up. Ocean Power
Technologies has been working with us from the start and are one of the world’s
leading wave energy companies. We’re delighted to have them on board.”
Angus Norman, Chief Executive of OPT Ltd, said: “OPT has provided unwavering
support to Wave Hub and the South West region’s vision to create a world-class
centre for the marine energy industry over the past five years. As a result, we are
proud to be the first to sign a Commitment Agreement to make this project a
commercial reality. With major new funding and final approval today, Wave Hub is
sure to become a global showcase for wave power technology and means that it
is now gaining momentum as a viable source of renewable energy.”
Carolyn Rule, Cabinet Member for Economy and Regeneration at Cornwall
Council, said: “Today’s announcements mark a huge investment in Cornwall’s low
carbon economy and put us at the forefront of green energy and green job
creation, both of which are priorities for Cornwall Council and our partners.”
Carleen Kelemen, Director of the Convergence Partnership Office for Cornwall
and the Isles of Scilly, said: “The Convergence Programmes for Cornwall and the
Isles of Scilly recognise the importance of the environment as an economic driver.
Cornwall's economic development strategy complements the low carbon
aspiration of the region in delivering real change on the ground. These
announcements and investment from the ERDF Convergence Programme
are the continuation of a journey to re-engineer our economy to exploit the
opportunities in a global market which is estimated at trillions of dollars over the
next few years.”
An independent economic impact assessment of Wave Hub, commissioned by
the RDA, has shown that it could create 1,800 jobs and £560 million in the UK
economy over 25 years. Almost 1,000 of these jobs and £332 million could be
generated in South West England.
The South West’s marine energy industry is supported by the £15 million
Peninsula Research Institute for Marine Renewable Energy (PRIMaRE), set up
two years ago by the Universities of Exeter and Plymouth with funding from the
South West RDA and Europe. It offers world-leading expertise at the cutting edge
of the industry and already boasts 15 world-class academic staff, 60 researchers
and a dedicated technology transfer team that works with businesses to support
high quality job creation.
Today’s announcements form part of the Government’s Low Carbon Industrial
Strategy and coincide with a suite of other policy announcements including
publication of the Government’s energy and climate change White Paper,
Renewable Energy Strategy and Carbon Reduction Strategy for Transport, which
together form a low carbon transition plan to decarbonise Britain’s economy, cut
emissions and meet renewable energy targets.
Ends
For more information contact Jason Clark, on 01208-77900 or via
jason@dca-pr.co.uk
Notes to Editors
1. Images: show a new artist’s impression of the Wave Hub project, linked to shore by a
subsea cable (in red) with different types of wave energy devices attached to the hub. Also
attached are low resolution photographs of OPT’s PowerBuoy wave energy converter.
2.
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High resolution versions are available from laura.tregonning@dca-pr.co.uk or download at
www.flickr.com/photos/southwestengland
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.More information can be found at
www.southwestrda.org.uk
Ocean Power Technologies is a pioneer in wave-energy technology that harnesses
ocean wave resources to generate reliable, clean, and environmentally-beneficial
electricity. OPT has a strong track record in harnessing wave energy and participates in a
$150 billion annual power generation equipment market. The Company's proprietary
PowerBuoy® system is based on modular, ocean-going buoys that capture and convert
predictable wave energy into low-cost, clean electricity. The Company is widely
recognised as a leading developer of on-grid and autonomous wave-energy generation
systems, benefiting from over a decade of in-ocean experience. OPT’s technology and
systems are insured by Lloyds Underwriters of London. OPT has offices in Warwick, UK
and Pennington, NJ. More information can be found at
www.oceanpowertechnologies.com.
Convergence programmes: In Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly the Convergence
programmes are made up of European Regional Development Fund (£347 million) and
European Social Fund (£153 million) Convergence Programmes will run until 2013 and
follow the successful Objective One Programme and prior to that Objective 5b. For further
information see: www.convergencecornwall.com
£100 million investment in the marine renewables industry in the South West over the
next two years includes £42 million in Wave Hub, £15 million in PRIMaRE, £10 million
additional support announced today from UK Government (excluding Wave Hub), £4.5
million in business support and supply chain development plus further anticipated
investment from the RDA, European Regional Development Fund and private sector in a
range of emerging projects including marine renewables related business premises and
port infrastructure.
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 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:
Jason Clark
Deborah Clark Associates
01208-77900
07980-834368
jason.clark@dca-pr.co.uk