Aquamarine touts "biggest deal in the history of marine energy" One gigawatt deal to provide wave energy to Airtricity set to be followed by similar agreements with other utilities
James Murray, BusinessGreen, 27 Feb 2009 Aquamarine Power is in talks to agree wave and tidal power supply deals with utilities in Ireland and Portugal Fresh from securing "the biggest deal in the history of marine energy" with Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE), wave and tidal power specialist Aquamarine Power is in talks to agree similar supply deals with utilities in Ireland and Portugal.
Earlier this week, the company signed a major alliance with SSE's renewables division Airtricity that could see the developer of tidal and wave energy systems provide the company with up to one gigawatt of marine energy by 2020.
Under the terms of the deal, the two companies will launch a 50:50 joint venture that will work to gain consent for wave and tidal energy sites in the UK and Ireland.
Speaking to BusinessGreen.com, Aquamarine Power chief executive Martin McAdam said that the company had already identified a number of potential sites in Orkney, southern England and Ireland and would ultimately aim to develop between eight and 12 sites with Airtricity, each capable of generating in excess of 100MW.
"We will work together to gain consent of the sites, and then once they are consented we will sell our stake in the joint venture in return for Airtricity agreeing to buy our technology," he explained, adding that the company was hoping to have consent granted for the first site within three years.
McAdam added that the company was looking to sign a number of deals of a similar scale with energy firms as it seeks to develop further sites off the west coast of Scotland, the west coast of Ireland and Portugal.
The Airtricity deal comes as Aquamarine prepares to install the first full scale demonstration version of its wave generator this summer
The Oyster Wave Power system is fixed to the sea bed and provides an " oscillating flap" that is pushed under water as it is hit by the waves. The movement pumps water at high pressure to a conventional hydroelectric system onshore that then generates electricity.
McAdam said that unlike many floating wave energy systems the technology is a simple mechanical device with only a small number of moving parts. He argued that as a result it should prove highly reliable and can also continue to operate even in storm conditions.
He added that the company was aiming to have a commercial version of the system available within three years, hopefully coinciding with the first wave of project approvals.
