Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers Maritime Engineering 162 December 2009 Issue MA4 Pages 187–196 doi: 10.1680/maen.2009.162 .4.187 Paper 900006 Received 25/02/2009 Accepted 06/03/2009 Keywords: maritime engineering/renewable energy /research & development Deborah Greaves Martin Attrill Andrew Chadwick Daniel Conley Andrew Eccleston Phil Hosegood Shunqi Pan Dominic Reeve Jon Williams Julian Wolfram Jingjing Xu Qingping Zou PRIMaRE: Peninsular Research Institute for Marine Renewable Energy, University of Plymouth, UK George Smith Brendan Godley Ching Lai Hor Lars Johanning Dean Millar Julian Wolfram Ahmed Zobaa PRIMaRE: Peninsular Research Institute for Marine Renewable Energy, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, Cornwall, UK Michael Belmont PRIMaRE: Peninsular Research Institute for Marine Renewable Energy, University of Exeter, UK Nick Harrington South West of England Regional Development Agency, Exeter, UK Marine renewable energy development – research, design, install D. Greaves BEng, DPhil(Oxon), CEng, MRINA, G. Smith BSc, PhD, CEng, MIP, MIMarEST, M. Attrill BSc, PhD, M. Belmont BSc, PhD, A. Chadwick MSc, PhD, CEng, MICE, D. Conley BSc, PhD, A. Eccleston BSc, PhD, CMet, FRMetS, MNI, FHEA, B. Godley BSc, BVMS, PhD, N. Harrington BSc, MRICS, C. L. Hor BEng, PhD, MIET, MIEEE, P. Hosegood MSc, PhD, L. Johanning DiplIng, PhD, D. Millar PhD, S. Pan MSc, PhD, D. Reeve BSc, PhD, FICE, FRMetS, FIMA, J. Williams BSc, PhD, J. Wolfram BSc, PhD, CEng, FRINA, J. Xu MSc, PhD, AFRIN, CNI, FHEA, A. Zobaa MSc, PhD, CEng, FIET, SMIEEE and Q. Zou BSc, PhD The UK government has committed to a reduction of carbon dioxide emissions for England and Wales by 20% below 1990 levels by 2010 and to increase the amount of electrical energy generated by renewable energy sources to 10% by 2010 and 15% by 2015. Wave and tidal energy are likely to contribute significantly to achieving these targets as important renewable energy technologies for the UK. The south-west region in particular has the potential to generate substantial amounts of renewable energy from its wave and tidal stream resources. The South West of England Regional Development Agency (SWRDA) recognises the potential of the marine energy industry for the region and is supporting demonstration projects in marine energy through the Wave Hub project and the Peninsular Research Institute in Marine Renewable Energy (Primare). The Wave Hub project provides a unique opportunity for interdisciplinary research to aid developments in marine renewable energy. In this paper, a description of some of the new ongoing research being undertaken jointly by researchers at the Universities of Exeter and Plymouth within Primare is presented. 1. INTRODUCTION Recognising the potential for marine renewable energy tech- nologies in the south-west, the South West of England Regional Development Agency (SWRDA) is developing the Wave Hub project, 1 which will provide a pre-commercialisation test site for arrays of wave energy devices, and the Peninsular Research Institute in Marine Renewable Energy (Primare), 2 which is a collaboration between the University of Plymouth and the University of Exeter. The aim of Primare is to build up research capacity in marine renewable energy and to provide research support for Wave Hub and associated industries. The Wave Hub concept is to provide an electrical grid connection to a point approximately 22 km off Hayle in Cornwall into which small arrays of wave energy devices would be connected. The aim is to speed up the commercialisation of wave energy converters (WEC; described elsewhere in this issue by Jones 3 as marine energy convertors) by reducing the risk and cost for developers of the first pre-commercial wave machine arrays. Wave Hub will facilitate this by providing a well-defined and monitored site with electrical connection to the onshore electricity grid. The project received consent from the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) in September 2007 and is scheduled to be commissioned in 2010. Four developers are preparing for deployment at the Wave Hub: Ocean Prospect/E.on 4 are planning to install seven P750 Pelamis machines, each rated at 750 kW; Ocean Power Technologies Inc. 5 is planning a 5 MW array of Powerbuoys; Fred Olsen Ltd 6 plan to deploy three of its Buldra WECs, in which buoys oscillate in heave under a floating platform; and finally, Oceanlinx 7 plan to deploy its WEC, which is a large floating chamber that drives air through a turbine similar to an oscillating water column (Figure 1). (This list was correct at the time of writing; for the latest information please see the Wave Hub website. 1 ) Each of the developers uses a different approach to extracting energy from the waves, although some of the engineering challenges are common to all. The University of Plymouth and the University of Exeter are joint partners in Primare, which aims to address global renewable energy considerations as well as meeting the immediate needs of the emerging marine renewable energy sector in the south west, particularly associated with Wave Hub. The scope of the Wave Hub–Primare research spans inter-linked challenges, such as device optimisation and mooring systems, electrical systems, characterisation of the wave energy resource, environmental impacts on marine biodiversity, environmental impacts on the shoreline, beaches and wave climate, as well as collision avoidance and legal and socio-economic considera- tions. The research methodologies will encompass fieldwork through in situ and remote monitoring for baseline, mid- installation and long-term analysis of the impacts of an offshore wave farm, in addition to computational modelling and physical laboratory-scale modelling. Primare’s initial research strategy is to focus activity in support of the Wave Hub development in order to ensure that the Maritime Engineering 162 Issue MA4 Marine renewable energy development – research, design, install Greaves et al 187