The European Marine Energy Centre Limited Public Funding

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The UK is the world leader in offshore energy generation with 5GW of installed capacity and ~15GW consented or in construction. As farms grow and move into remote, deeper waters subsea cable resilience has a critical impact on security of supply and cost of electricity. Electricity is delivered via redundant buried power cables, however this infrastructure is expensive to fix and experiences the worst hazards of subsea life such as anchor drag and seabed movement. This leads to exposed or free spanning sections which can result in failure and a complicated repair - with the worst case being windfarms sitting idle unable to export their electricity. The situation is exacerbated by current technology being unable to adequately locate faults. The MIDAS project brings the known advantages of fibre optic sensing to subsea cabling, developing a product and service which will reduce failure occurences and in the worst case scenarios will immediately identify and locate an issue (a significant improvement on current technology). MIDAS, integrated in a system-wide Operations & Maintenance strategy, will also provide operators with always-online site-wide ocean wave conditions which will improve safety and lower the cost of energy through more efficient marine vessel planning.

The Sustainable Aviation Test Environment (SATE) project will deliver a Regional Sustainable Aviation Strategy for the Highlands & Islands. This will establish a roadmap for new technologies to enter service in the region and quantify the commercial and social benefits that the improved connectivity will deliver. The Highlands and Islands region accounts for more than 50% of the land mass of Scotland, but less than 10% of the population, and the work seeks ultimately to improve connectivity to some of the UK's most remote and rural areas, and by doing extend the significant contribution to economic and social development of the communities in the region already identified by earlier work. The project brings together a key group of stakeholders to strengthen the planning and delivery of regional transport: local councils who represent communities requiring improved cost-effective connectivity; businesses looking for improved routes to market; technology partners attracted by a meaningful and scalable regional deployment; airport operators; subject matter experts; and the statutory regional transport partnership. In response to the need to decarbonise aviation, new technologies offering low or zero carbon emissions have been developed and demonstrated. These technologies have been applied to a wide range of aircraft; small, large, conventional take-off, vertical take-off, crewed and uncrewed. These offer a range of solutions that can be optimised into an integrated regional air mobility system that adds capacity and capability, and a social and business dividend, to the existing transport services. This strategy will confirm the roadmap for these technologies to enter service and informs the policy necessary to bring the new services to reality. It will also quantify the specific environmental, cost-effective, and connectivity benefits.

The proposed electrocatalytical technology for methanol synthesis offers a novel pathway to high-efficiency conversion of biogenic carbon dioxide and green hydrogen into methanol, which is a prime candidate for a net zero carbon marine fuel. Green methanol offers a compelling solution for the maritime industry's transition to more sustainable and decarbonized operations. Its low environmental impact, compatibility with existing engines, safety advantages, and potential to comply with global emission regulations make it a strong candidate in the quest for greener marine fuels. Green methanol produced from biogenic carbon dioxide and green hydrogen has reduced carbon emissions, lower emissions of SOx and NOx, and reduced particulate matter, and higher energy density than ammonia and hydrogen. Methanol is also more safer than LNG and hydrogen, due to the usage of conventional carbon steel based infrastructure and ambient temperature and pressure. Methanol is an existing bulk commodity chemical with an existing market of $31B and annual production capacity of 110 million metric tons. Methanol has existing regulations and supply chain, which makes the handling of fuel much easier, simpler, and lower cost compared to other hydrogen carriers. There has been an increasing shift over the last few years towards energy security, supply chain security, and creating local resources fed economy independent of global events such as tariffs, trade wars, oil price volatility, and inflationary pressures. The project would create a sustainable, cost-competitive, and most importantly a stable inflation proof marine fuel supply chain for the maritime sector in north of Scotland, Orkney and Shetlands. The point source CO2 sources will be used as feedstock for e-methanol synthesis, with green hydrogen derived from onshore wind farms. The project will deliver a pre-deployment pilot system for e-methanol synthesis as well as a techno-commercial case for scaling up for the local maritime sector. The project will target small to medium-scale point sources of CO2 in Orkney, Shetlands, and north of Scotland. The emitters can produce circa 100kTPA of e-methanol, sufficient to cover the annual diesel consumption in Orkney and half of Shetlands marine fuel demand. Scalable CO2 sources are located at the England-Scotland boundary, on the east as well as west coast.

There is uncertainty regarding what fuels will replace traditional fossil derived versions for maritime environments. Using a plasma electrolyser system (PES), Hydrogen Refinery (H2R) technology will be utilised to produce multiple 'future fuels' to allow for choice, which other solutions do not. Their concept utilises cheap, readily available unrefined waste products as feedstock to directly produce hydrogen or synthesis gas (syngas) without emissions whilst capturing the carbon in a solid form; a carbon capture and storage (CCS) solution. The Government's Marine Decarbonisation Strategy recognises four potential 'future fuels' stating "that maritime decarbonisation is complex and there is no "one size fits all" solution to cover the breadth of vessel types, sizes and operations" but this proposal investigates providing a 'waste-to-wake' facility that can deliver whichever 'future fuel' the customer chooses from the same small-scale, modular but scalable plant, to be used locally. The H2R concept has many benefits as it can take waste from a variety of sources to convert to the 'future fuel' of choice, enabling the production of the right fuel types on-demand, locally, for the right vessels from waste generated locally. The project will study the feasibility of taking different waste types, such as mixed municipal solid waste (MSW), collected on the Orkney Islands from households and businesses, to convert to valuable, non-fossil derived maritime fuels for local customers. H2R will work with the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) and Orkney Islands Council (OIC) to identify which waste streams can be utilised to make either hydrogen, ammonia, methanol or a biofuel. H2R will utilise information from other grant funded projects to assess what waste streams are most efficient and will work with EMEC and OIC to understand the availability of surplus renewable energy available on the Orkney Islands. OIC will collect data on the types of waste that are currently shipped to the Shetland Heat, Energy and Power (SHEAP) facility or that could be more efficiently utilised in this project and used on Orkney. EMEC will utilise their experience with assessing new and innovative technologies to identify the most effective placement, design and integration with other assets in the Orkney Islands as well as focus on delivering a cost-benefit analysis of the project. Pre-consenting exercises will be carried out, to understand what complications could be involved in the setting up of the small-scale, zero emission facility and day to day management of the development.

**CoastalCorre is a feasibility study exploring the development of a modular charging hub to support the transition to electric vessels operating in coastal waters.** The system is designed to operate nearshore, offering an alternative to shore-based infrastructure which can be limited by grid capacity, tides, or available space. The hub concept combines at-source renewable energy generation with innovative redox battery storage and advanced power conversion technology. These components will be integrated within a scalable floating mooring platform, designed to deliver rapid charging for electric vessels. The study will focus on how this system could be deployed along green maritime corridors in Orkney, where fishing and marine tourism vessels often operate in areas with limited access to electrical infrastructure. The concept will be designed and tested in controlled conditions, helping to assess how the system performs across different sea states. While the case study is focused on Orkney, the findings will inform wider applicability across other remote and energy-constrained coastal regions in the UK. By enabling charging closer to where vessels are in use, the system could reduce the need for large onboard batteries, extend vessel range, and help lower emissions. Led by Urban Foresight, the project brings together experienced technical partners including the University of Plymouth, EMEC, Mhor Energy, Apricity, and Supply Design. Over a seven-month period, the project will develop a tested platform design, examine commercial models, and produce a costed plan for a future full-scale demonstrator, with the view for deployment by 2028\.

The decarbonisation of the marine sector is likely to drive a substantial surge in national electrical demand. The sector has a critical role in UK economy and supporting island communities, but is also complex, with huge diversity across ports and their stakeholders. Seeking to address this challenge, SeaChange will: \*build a replicable, localised model for exploring energy transition scenarios for the sector and electricity network . \*develop a tool to understand potential maritime energy demands and considerations for optimised network investment planning \*investigate potential business models to facilitate the transition; and \*consider regulatory implications for critical national infrastructure.

This techno-economic feasibility study explores the potential to bring a breakthrough clean fuel production technology to market which has the potential to deliver significant decarbonisation to the UK's maritime activities. The study will focus initially on Orkney and Belfast as test locations for installing the clean fuel production and distribution systems. Both areas have access to significant renewable sources, but also cover a diverse range of vessel related activities, which will ensure that the outcomes are replicable across the UK. The main aims of this project are to complete a techno-economic feasibility study to determine the commercial viability of: * Production of e-diesel and bio-diesel for the maritime sector * Use of e-diesel on marine vessels to displace fossil fuel use * Use of bio-diesel to supply port-side equipment This study will determine the benefits and challenges to producing e-diesel using CATAGEN's E-FUEL GEN technology and direct air capture (DAC) technologies to decarbonise typical marine vessel fuel demand while enabling continued use of bunkering and fuel infrastructure. This work will be supported by Belfast Harbour, EMEC, Orkney Islands Council, Highlands Fuels to provide specialist knowledge and information to support development of a robust and holistic decarbonisation solution that is applicable across the UK and can be exported globally. Successful completion of the study will demonstrate how e-diesel and bio-diesel can be used to decarbonise the maritime sector and supporting infrastructure whilst enabling continued use of existing propulsion systems, fuel storage and handling equipment, and health and safety regulations. The study will show how this removes several of the barriers to adoption of decarbonisation technologies such as retrofitting/upgrading of existing assets, unproven or lacking infrastructure capability and undefined or absent regulation and subsidy frameworks. The project will use data including, local renewable energy generation potential, fuel demand profiles, and fuel infrastructure information provided by project partners to determine how CATAGEN technology can accelerate decarbonisation of maritime activities at partner ports, and show how this can be replicated across the UK maritime sector. Additionally, the study will provide a set of recommendations for how the knowledge and understanding gained can be used to develop a demonstration project and how it can be replicated across other UK ports.

As offshore wind pushes into deeper waters and the supporting fleet strives to decarbonise, limitations are encountered in the charging capacity of electrically-powered marine vessels (marine EVs) that seek to support construction and operations. The option to recharge in the field therefore becomes attractive, both in terms of extending range, and also increasing the workability of marine EVs that might otherwise be confined to relatively short transits to and from shore. This project seeks to trial and advance to commercialisation an innovative method of achieving recharging offshore, the PALM Charger. Based on Apollo's Pull and Lock Marine connection system, the PALM Charger allows a vessel to hook up to an offshore mounted charging point in a single winching operation from its back deck. Minimal bespoke outfitting is needed, no active control systems are used and there is no personnel transfer. The connection operation is swift and rugged. The core infrastructure trials will comprise a 14-day offshore deployment of a test rig onto a moored platform off Orkney. A marine vessel will make repeated connections and disconnections using the prototype PALM Charger system in a range of seastates. Project objectives include: * Demonstrating the mechanical connection system in an offshore environment * Demonstrating the functionality of the electrical connection system * Building understanding of the vessel handling operations * Accumulating reliability data on the system operation * Building understanding of the regulatory and certification context * Refining the commercial design * Developing a marketing plan and business case. Apollo will provide overall project management and engineering, providing their prototype PALM Charger system and evolving the marketing plan and design development. The European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) will lead the testing operations, working with Leask Marine to set up a test rig and undertake vessel connection/ disconnection operations. As a marine contractor, Leask Marine represent a group of potential future customers, informing the marine operational practicalities and market interest. The outputs of the project will thus advance conversations with developers who are open to innovations, while requiring evidence of reliability to support bankability decisions. While this project focuses on UK offshore wind as a use case, the international expansion of the market will present export opportunities. There are also numerous other sectors where offshore charging of marine EVs would have an application.

The Rural Energy Hubs project builds upon decades of experience, joint working and delivering innovative low-carbon projects in Orkney and Shetland. It embraces a place-based demonstration approach to overcoming non-technical barriers to accelerate decarbonisation. Seven work packages integrated across the energy system demonstrate how decarbonisation can be developed, embedded and accelerated by establishing locally-led coordinated action in Rural Energy Hubs, providing innovative and practical focal-points to drive decarbonisation for individuals, businesses and local authorities, maximising social, economic and environmental benefits. This project brings together work and partners from the Net Zero Living Orkney and Shetland Rural Energy Hubs projects in Phase 1 of the Net Zero Living: Pathfinder Places programme. Both studies built on learning and challenges from the IUK PFER demonstration project ReFLEX Orkney, an ambitious programme of innovative integrated consumer-facing community-led services that encountered significant non-technical barriers. This Phase 2 project seeks innovative solutions to key non-technical barriers: finance, regulation, grid capacity, resource, behavioural change and lack of data. High-impact outputs have been developed to encompass all modalities of the energy system: * Transport -- innovative electric and hydrogen solutions for local authority fleets including large mobility vehicles, integrating demand-led community-managed services, a Mobility as a Service (MaaS) platform and distributed charging infrastructure, financially sustainable car club models for rural areas, maritime and aviation decarbonisation trials for passenger vessel and heavy-lift drones, plus holistic, system-wide planning for decarbonisation of transport across communities. * Heat -- district heating solutions for rural communities, smarter monitoring in domestic and community premises to drive behaviour change, development of the Building Renovation Passport programme to support users through all aspects of decarbonising homes and offices. * Power -- developing affordable models of supporting individuals, communities and businesses with renewable generation and battery solutions; including incorporating energy generation and storage into Rural Energy Hubs. These mode-based innovation activities will be linked together to allow the setup of the first pilot Rural Energy Hub, in Brae, Shetland; showcasing delivery of our fully integrated, local, placed-based solutions. Learning will be combined into a UK-wide replication plan, which incorporates a range of place-based business models to ensure maximum uptake. The partners are Aquatera (AQT) (lead), Orkney Islands Council (OIC), Shetland Islands Council (SIC), the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC), Community Energy Scotland (CES) and Highland Fuels (HF). This hand-picked team brings together significant real-world experience of addressing non-technical barriers to decarbonisation and successfully delivering ambitious projects of this nature.

The MARINERG-i Distributed Research Infrastructure (DRI) unites and consolidates the EU Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) testing facilities to accelerate development and realise potential of this sector. The world is current undergoing a significant shift in all aspects of energy supply and the vast potential of ORE is being realised and is an intrinsic part of future plans. Through the acceleration of technology development MARINERG-i will provide significant support to achieving the EU Green Deal targets. This will strengthen European scientific and engineering expertise as well as foster innovation in ORE technologies. By consolidating investment in infrastructure and expertise across Europe, MARINERG-i will offer the best quality service and will act as a magnet to attract further funding. Following a successful application, MARINERG-i is one of 11 new Research Infrastructures to be added to the ESFRI 2021 roadmap. The ESFRI European Roadmap for Research Infrastructures,stimulatesthe implementation of these facilities and arguably containsthe best European science facilities based on a thorough evaluation and selection procedure. With Ireland as the lead country MARINERG-i is currently also supported by Belgium, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom, with considerable support from institutions within France, the Netherlands, Italy, Norway and Germany. The team are now embarking on a preparatory phase, establishing the legal, governance, scientific and business components required to implement the MARINERG-i DRI.

There is 10GW of predictable, high-value tidal stream energy potential in European waters, with up to 100 GW of capacity globally . This is an almost entirely unharnessed clean energy resource, with just 13 MW currently deployed . Transitioning European market leading technologies from single deployments, up to farm scale, is the next milestone in harnessing this clean, predictable, secure, domestic energy resource. EURO-TIDES has been developed specifically to address the call topic by delivering a 9.6MW farm of four 2.4MW Orbital tidal energy devices of the same series. The farm will operate in full operational conditions for 15 years, deploying in 2027. The EUROTIDES consortium will work collaboratively to deliver six ambitious objectives and drive the sector forwards: 1. De-risking tidal energy technology development by delivering a 9.6MW pilot farm and three pilot farm system innovations; reducing Levelised Cost of Energy (LCOE) of Orbital’s floating tidal technology from €120/MWh to <€100/MWh. 2. Increase bankability and insurability by providing 17,520 hours of operational data, displaying the production of 50GWh+, and verification of key technology metrics to internationally recognised methodologies: reducing cost of capital from 10%-12% to 5%-6%. 3. Increase availability of tidal stream by creating an efficient robust, replicable, and reliable operations and maintenance programme: increasing availability to 95%+. 4. Improve market confidence by developing industrial design and manufacturing processes: increasing supply chain capacity from one device per annum to 80 devices per annum. 5. Increase knowledge of environmental impacts to ensure appropriate environmental protection and mitigation is in place: enabling safe scalability to a 100GW+ global market. 6. Making performance, reliability and behavior data collected from the demonstration publicly available: accelerating scalability, commercialisation, and deployment of a 2GW+ project pipeline.

In the SEASTAR project, coordinator Nova Innovation (Nova) leads a world-class team to deliver a 4MW array of 16 tidal stream turbines at the EMEC Fall of Warness tidal site in Orkney - the world’s first large tidal farm, which will contain more tidal turbines than are currently deployed worldwide. SEASTAR will utilise Nova's well-proven M100D turbine, developed in partnership with project partner SKF - the world’s leading supplier of rotating equipment. The project builds on the success of Nova's six-turbine Shetland Tidal Array - the world's first offshore tidal array - which was delivered under the H2020 EnFAIT project by a team including SEASTAR partners SKF and Wood. They are joined in SEASTAR by DLA Piper, the leading global law firm in renewable energy, and by specialists in sustainability, insurance, consenting, communication, engineering and offshore operations. SEASTAR will demonstrate for the first time the industrial systems, manufacturing and operational techniques required to efficiently deliver a large tidal farm. It will generate and share transferable knowledge on key consenting risks, de-risking future large arrays globally. And it will improve the bankability of tidal energy by cutting costs, proving performance, and enhancing the insurability of large tidal farms. SEASTAR represents a step change for tidal energy. Volume industrial manufacturing, operation and maintenance techniques will be applied for the first time to the full lifecycle of a tidal farm, from design, procurement, production, shipping, marshalling, deployment, commissioning, operation and decommissioning. The 16-turbine farm provides unique opportunities to address critical environmental evidence gaps and develop the cost-effective, reliable monitoring solutions at scale required to accelerate permitting and remove barriers for future large tidal farms.

This project (IselAI) brings an exciting artificial intelligence dimension to the successful and live data exchange platform (IsleDEX) built under the PFER funded ReFLEX smart local energy system (SLES) demonstrator project. IsleAI includes the same key players as IsleDEX, namely UrbanTide, Aquatera and EMEC. It will be led by ReFLEX Orkney, the special purpose vehicle set-up under the ReFLEX SLES project. It also brings in two Orkney based development trusts as pilot customers. The costs and benefits of the "just transition" to net zero must be spread fairly across all incomes so the poorest won't proportionally pay more but they share in the benefits of low-carbon technologies. Rural and island communities are particularly exposed to fuel poverty. Access to data and the latest developments in artificial intelligence will be an important component in the just transition. It is harder to model the housing stock in rural and island areas than built up urban areas. Alongside higher fuel poverty rural and island areas often have older and less energy efficient housing stock than urban areas too. This adds weight to the need for robust data to help decision making on property upgrades. IsleAI will help address fuel poverty, reduce power consumption, ensure houses are appropriately heated and support the increasing use of locally produced renewable energy. IsleAI utilises existing and novel data sources with the latest AI techniques, by leveraging UrbanTide's uZero, an advanced fuel poverty identification tool, which is the only product in the UK which incorporates Smart Meter System Metadata, to advance the identification of at-risk places, support new interventions and monitor impact. It will integrate recently launched thermal imaging Vu satellites with 3m resolution, ideal for measuring localised thermal dynamics at a building level. This includes newly developed façade recognition AI to enrich current energy analysis. This will be linked with other energy data to support the adoption of new technologies at a community level. IsleAI will provide the new insights to decision-makers in the energy value chain including segmentation of households by postcode to better understand different customer types (can't pay, could pay and would pay), building unique 'Place Profiles' to support more efficient homes and uptake of low carbon technologies.

The overall aim of the H2Heat project is to demonstrate the full value chain for green hydrogen (H2) heating for commercial building heating. 40% of total energy consumed and 36% of greenhouse gas emissions in EU correspond to buildings, with 79% of that energy used for heating of water and air conditioning. H2HEAT, in exciting alliance with the Canary Health Service (SCS), wish to create a full demonstration of Green H2 for heating (and later energy). This will serve as the replicable model to be rolled out across the SCS hospitals enabling the SCS fulfil its ambitious ‘Health Zer0 net Emissions Strategy’ delivering deep decarbonization. H2HEAT will use offshore wind renewable energy (RE) to produce H2, from Esteyco 6MW EU funded WHEEL project. The centralised onshore H2 facility, will produce H2 initially with a 1MW electrolyser, to be used to substitute conventional fuel by the large end-user hospital CHUIMI with substantial heating requirements (>0.5MW), using a novel combination of an advanced combustion technology burner specifically designed for H2 operation H2-CHP, and a heat pump. The H2-CHP will produce heat and energy and the energy will power the heat pump for substantial heat provision to the hospital with no waste. Full end-to-end infrastructure for H2 transport and use will be planned, installed and commissioned. Comprehensive and complementary mixture of expertise and know-how provided by the consortium partners will ensure an efficient realization of the technical objectives of the project, reduce total cost of ownership (TCO) of H2 fuel for consumers, and develop replicable business models for wide-scale commercial usage of H2 as a direct heating alternative across Gran Canaria. H2Heat will contribute to enabling Gran Canaria become part of the H2 valley economy through locally produced H2 from RE.

Project Verdant -- Zero Emission Crew Transfer Vessel (ZE-CTV) is a project from Green Marine (UK) Ltd, with support from The European Marine Energy Centre Limited (EMEC),Mwaves Ltd, UHI, Manor Marine, Hydrogen John, Corio,Corvus and West of Orkney Windfarm, which will enable this sector to move towards eliminating GHG emissions from the CTVs used for the installation and maintenance of UK offshore windfarms.It is estimated that over 1600 crew transfer vessels CTV's will be required by 2050 to service UK and EU wind farms, in the same time frame, the IMO greenhouse gas strategy is for total annual emissions from international shipping to be reduced by at least 50% by 2050 and more immediately, this strategy envisages a 40% reduction of CO2 emissions by 2030, both compared to 2008 levels. The strategy will be revised in 2023 stressing the need on doubling down in these GHG emission reduction efforts. In order to meet this and other national climate goals (Net Zero by 2050) it is essential that the UK CTV fleet is decarbonised. The project will be focusing in performing a feasibility study for converting an existing 25 m CTV to be able to operate in Zero Emission mode. This will serve as the steppingstone to reach the project teams more ambitious goals The feasibility study objectives are: -- Determine how to reduce and eventually eliminate the GHG emissions from the fleet of a CTV and work boat operator. -- Define and quantify the challenges of using hydrogen as a fuel, including: Technological, Logistical, Regulatory and legislative, and Operational parameters. -- Define the benefits in terms of lifecycle emissions and economic impacts. -- Define commercial applications for this and future hydrogen powered vessels for the support of offshore wind projects. -- Produce the specification, costings & obtain approval in principle to convert an existing vessel to a Hydrogen fuel cell - hybrid vessel for Zero Emission Operations. The feasibility study main deliverables are: * Produce costings and a detailed specification for the CTV conversion. * Obtain approval in principle from the MCA and the vessel Classification Society.

Since the UK's first grid-connected wind turbine started generating electricity in 1951, Orkney has been a world leading testbed for renewable energy and decarbonisation - pioneering innovative approaches and technologies; and growing a collaborative, expert community of keen early adopters and volunteers for pilots and projects. Featuring leadership and involvement of long established and effective local partnerships between Aquatera, Orkney Islands Council, the European Marine Energy Centre, Community Energy Scotland and ReFLEX Orkney Ltd the NZPP Orkney project will build on this tradition of innovation success and pioneering development activity. These partners have significant real-world experience of non-technical barriers to achieving innovation in energy solutions, which include regulation, policy, finance, behavioural change and challenges with restrictions around the grid network. Following previous work such as the Orkney ReFLEX project, these issues are well understood but have proven wicked problems to address to date. The NZPP project will specifically engage with these known difficulties -- unlocking new and innovative solutions which can secure further progress for Orkney in decarbonisation. The Project will also take place in sequence directly after core funding completes for ReFLEX Orkney, and the launch of the new Islands Deal _Islands Centre for Net Zero project_. The ICNZ also involves the Orkney NZPP partners, and Heriot Watt University - in a 10 year programme to create a pan-island innovation Centre that will support Orkney, Shetland and the Outer Hebrides. The NZPP project will therefore enable a jump start for key thematic objectives which can underpin the future work of the ICNZ - ensuring accelerated solutions to decarbonisation for Orkney and the Scottish Islands which will in turn have replicability and application worldwide. Transition and transferability of understanding of challenges and solutions development are critical hallmarks of the NZPP project process. This will form a foundation of the Orkney project from the outset -- with direct collaboration already in place to link in with a parallel bid led by Shetland Islands Council to pursue a NZPP agenda for Shetland linked to energy hubs. There will be mutual benefit in the cumulative activity between Orkney and Shetland associated with these pilot projects -- reflecting the strong traditions of both Orkney and Shetland as innovative island communities; and presenting an effective pathway to the future work of the ICNZ which will further enable this partnership to include experience and challenges of communities across the Western Isles and beyond.

GreenTransit is a collaborative feasibility study for the demonstration of a hydrogen fuelled crew transfer vessel (CTV) operating from Wick, Caithness, Scotland to service the 588MW Beatrice Offshore Wind Farm. CTVs are relied upon extensively for marine logistics between shore and the wind farm for the transportation of technicians and parts. The project will plan for the first real-world demonstration of a hydrogen CTV and onshore refuelling infrastructure in the UK and will be implemented by March 2025\. GreenTransit will explore transport, storage and delivery methodology for hydrogen use in CTVs including the required infrastructure for safe and efficient operations. GreenTransit benefits from full alignment with SSE Renewables' Gordonbush Hydrogen Project that will produce and supply green hydrogen from the nearby Gordonbush onshore wind farm. GreenTransit will demonstrate all the critical innovation needed across the full hydrogen value-chain, from production to end-use, a UK first in the offshore wind vessel sector, with hydrogen replacing Marine Gas Oil. This feasibility study will pave the way for the widespread decarbonisation of rapidly expanding offshore wind maritime emissions and be relevant to the wider UK transport and shipping sectors. In the UK, CTV numbers are estimated by ORE Catapult to increase from c100 today to 186 by 2030 and 383 by 2050\. CTVs currently contribute significantly to an estimated 284kt CO2e/year of operations and maintenance emissions. GreenTransit brings together partners at the forefront of the offshore renewables and maritime industries currently responsible for operating more than 25 CTVs servicing over 1GW of offshore wind. This consortium has the required breadth of technical, operational, commercial and project management experience along with demonstrable access to a wide range of stakeholders. The partnership includes offshore vessels operator (SSE Renewables' Joint Venture site - Beatrice Offshore Wind Farm), a green hydrogen producer (SSE Renewables), a fuel distributor (Simpson Oils) with existing customers in the maritime sector and an established energy sector harbour authority (Wick Harbour Authority) with the expertise of the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC), a research and technology organisation focussed on delivering hydrogen, energy and maritime projects. This project team is supported by third parties Abbott Risk Consultants providing independent technical Safety, Engineering and Risk Management consultancy and from Pareto Shipbrokers - vessels experts. This will ensure that the approach taken is rigorous and focused enabling demonstration on the Beatrice windfarm by March 2025\.

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ZEHPHyr1, Zero Emission Hydrogen Powered Hovercraft, is an 8-month feasibility which will de-risk the key barriers to zero-emission hovercraft operations. These barriers include -- operational barriers (socio-economics, crew training, regulations, life cycle impact), technical barriers (hydrogen-based propulsion system) and availability of hydrogen infrastructure (production, storage, distribution, bunkering, integration with wider infrastructure/mobility). The central innovation in the project is the replacement of the diesel engines in today's hovercraft with a zero-emission hydrogen propulsion system consisting of MW class fuel cells, electric thrusters and high-power batteries. The project's goal is to find credible solutions to overcoming the above barriers and in doing so, pave the way for follow-on phases of development, where the novel propulsion system will be demonstrated on 12-seat and 80-seat hovercraft. Introduction of zero-emission hovercraft into commercial service is expected in 2027/28, with letters of support received from potential end users. In addition to the hovercraft, additional spillover products are expected to be commercialised as a result of the project, namely MW class fuel cells and batteries (into other marine vessels) and electric thrusters (into other industries, e.g., aerospace). The project team consists of a best-of-breed consortium well placed to deliver the desired goals of the project. Led by Blue Bear, the team includes, Griffon Hoverwork Limited, Bramble Energy, Nyobolt, Aquatera and the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC).

The coming years will see a significant increase in marine traffic associated with offshore wind development, at the same time as maritime technology will introduce measures to decarbonise with clean fuels and electrification of vessels. A system of Floating Fuel Depots (FFDs) is proposed as a means of facilitating the supply of fuels to this fleet, while optimising transit distances, reducing emissions and easing pressures on port facilities. FFDs comprise modular moored platforms that are outfitted with plant and storage equipment to support the servicing of marine vessels at optimal locations, close to the construction or operational sites. Through this project, Apollo, EMEC and Aquatera will thoroughly explore the technical and economic potential of the FFD concept, while investigating the environmental, societal and economic opportunity that they present. To demonstrate the potential of the Floating fuels depot project, a network of strategic locations for FFDs will be considered for marine traffic supporting the North Sea Scotwind development. Focussing on future fuel types (including hydrogen, e-methanol and ammonia etc) we will identify optimum location for boats to refuel. These will remove unnecessary additional movements back to ports and harbours, removing journeys which are solely for refuelling, thus reducing carbon emissions and contributing to the efficiency of the entire sector. A concept design will be developed for a modular Floating Fuel Depot system, with emphasis on repurposing of existing infrastructure, considering offshore generation and storage of fuels for the maritime sector. Balancing the key drivers of supply and demand, forecasted traffic, technology availability and initial and through life costs, this study will provide a clear path forward for this concept. Key stakeholders will be consulted to estimate timing, evaluate societal benefit and review all legislation and consenting constraints, producing a solution which brings tangible decarbonisation and commercial benefits across the value chain. Our aim is to progress this project so that it is ready in time to support the rapid expansion in offshore wind (ScotWind and INTOG), support sustainable decommissioning of North Sea oil and gas assets as well as life extension projects, as well as freight and tourism vessels. By considering the specifics of the ScotWind development we aim to inform the potential for the whole maritime sector, both UK and abroad. At the end of the project, Apollo, EMEC and Aquatera look forward to sharing the outcomes and deliverables industry wide.

no public description

Based at Kirkwall Airport in the Orkney Islands, the Sustainable Aviation Test Environment (SATE) is the UK's first low-carbon aviation test centre embedded at a commercial airport. SATE brings together an international consortium of industry partners, public sector bodies and academia who will work with a range of regional businesses and stakeholders to apply state-of-the-art aviation technology to deliver targeted economic growth. SATE's overarching objectives include: * Demonstrating the next generation of air services * Ensuring airports operations are ready to support sustainable aviation requirements * Improving regional connectivity * Supporting Scottish Government's ambition for a Highlands and Islands Net Zero Aviation region by 2040 SATE has already established itself at the forefront of future aviation. Recent successes include Ampaire demonstrating the first hybrid-electric flights in Scotland and Windracers trialling autonomous flights for delivering Royal Mail cargo between Kirkwall and North Ronaldsay. These practical outcomes have raised the profile of SATE, putting the project on the global stage. SATE will now expand to create the UK Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Regional Aviation Systems, enabling pre-commercial demonstrations of novel aviation technologies with proven use cases to commercialise clean innovation in a real-world environment. Use cases will include: * Scheduled airline routes * Offshore energy services * National Health Service activities * Island / remote region deliveries * Environmental survey and inspection Implementation of these will require advances in technology, regulation, and policy. These are reflected in the cross-cutting activities which include: * Establishing a dedicated test environment airspace * Matchmaking technology to community and business needs * Accelerating technology innovation * Mapping out the future Highlands and Islands aviation system Kirkwall Airport is one of eleven airports operated by HIAL and an ideal test environment location due to the variety of operated routes (including short hops to inter-island airfields operated by Orkney Islands Council). The wider project team includes leading technology developers ZeroAvia, Windracers and FlareBright. EMEC brings expertise in green-hydrogen refuelling infrastructure, and HITRANS will lead on connectivity into the wider transport system. The socio-economic impact of a new regional-aviation system will be supported by UHI, Connected Places Catapult (CPC) and Aracadis. This project will also stimulate inward investment and supply chain growth which is a key responsibility for Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE). Project highlights will include working with the CAA to approve a regional sandbox airspace, establishment of a UAV hub-and-spoke delivery network, a first hydrogen-propelled regional-aircraft flight and an international demonstration flight to Norway.

The 'Hydrogen in an Integrated Maritime Energy Transition' (HIMET) project will demonstrate maritime decarbonisation enabling technologies, encompassing the design, development, and demonstration of four solutions: 1.Hydrogen systems and future micro-grid architectures for resilient shore-side power, including testing of a hybrid hydrogen/solar system and deployment of this hybrid system on Orkney; 2.Combustion of hydrogen in a marine propulsion engine, through testing at a dedicated hydrogen test facility in the north east of England; 3.Demonstration of a marinised hydrogen storage container, for the application on board a vessel; and 4. Hydrogen fuel cell demonstration, showing the potential of the technology to safely supply auxiliary power for a vessel. This ambitious programme of activities will focus on the decarbonisation of two key maritime sectors in Orkney: ferry service and cruise terminal operations. These first-of-a-kind demonstrations will build the evidence base needed to enable broader maritime decarbonisation using hydrogen technologies. Although our activities focus on addressing challenges seen in the Orkney context, our findings will be applicable to all island and coastal environments where vessels provide vital lifeline services. After project demonstration activities are complete, HIMET partners will pursue opportunities to develop applications for type approval of the systems demonstrated, in order to facilitate uptake across the UK, and beyond. This will create market opportunities for the integrated HIMET team of UK technology developers and maritime engineering experts. In parallel, we will also carry out research and stakeholder engagement activities to establish how these deployments can best inform the broader maritime energy transition in Orkney and elsewhere. We will draw upon embedded energy system and maritime innovation expertise in Orkney and in the north east of England, both areas identified as centres of excellence in research and development for these sectors. Our consortium is further strengthened by the involvement of leading technology developers from all across the United Kingdom, who will bring their innovative systems and solutions to Orkney for testing in our "living laboratory". This combined work programme will build on Orkney's position as an ideal location to research, develop and demonstrate the maritime technologies and working practices of the future.

With hydrogen-electric aviation as the only credible large-scale zero-carbon aviation option, the HyFlyer II project aims to take huge steps towards accelerating its adoption. It will repower an existing sub-regional airframe with a certifiable 600kW powertrain developed by ZeroAvia, integrating Aeristech's unique air compression technology. To complete the ecosystem, EMEC will provide green hydrogen and design the operational systems for fuelling at commercial airports. In setting up a unique UK supply chain, it positions the country's aviation industry for the next century of aviation - demonstrated by a 300NM zero-carbon flight of a 19-passenger aircraft at the end.

This Orkney Island -based, innovative project will create the UK's first low-carbon aviation test environment, based at a licenced island airport with all year round scheduled air service operations to UK, and regular off-shore oil and gas helicopter traffic. The Sustainable Aviation Test Environment (SATE) will be a UK first and, should one or more of the new aviation technologies be adopted for island use, it will also help improve the quality of life of the communities it serves (through job creation, improved access to education and healthcare, etc.). The SATE will place the UK at the vanguard of the adoption of next-generation aircraft, and spearheading aviation's response to climate change. The continued demand for aviation services (air passenger numbers on the 11 HIAL airport network have increased by 33% in the last 10 years) , is at odds with the effects of an international climate emergency. We need to rapidly decarbonise the aviation sector to reconcile these competing imperatives and to reduce the carbon footprint of air travellers. Indeed, if aviation is to be used as a means to improve the quality of life and maintain or grow the population of remote and rural communities, then the options for the appropriate sustainable aviation technologies must be explored. The options include the following: * aircraft (with electric, hydrogen, or synthetic fuel replacing conventional fossil fuels), * changes to the physical airport infrastructure to support the adopted technologies, and transport to the airport * green energy supply for terminal buildings and ground operations, * necessary digital networks for resilient communication between airport and aircraft (particularly UAVs). Kirkwall Airport is one of an 11-airport, regional airport group, operated by **HIAL** - who are project lead -, and is particularly suited as a test environment location due to the variety of routes it offers which include: short hops to the inter- islands airfields, eg Westray - best known for being one of the two airports joined by the shortest scheduled flight in the world -, and operated by **Orkney Island Council.** In addition there are regular air services to Aberdeen, Edinburgh & Glasgow, with a summer service to Norway. The project team includes technology developers who will be test ready during the 18 months of this project phase: **Ampaire**, **ZeroAvia**, **Windracers**, **Flarebright** and **Loganair**. Orkney provides options to fly over water, in a challenging environment & climate, for real-world application testing of the technologies. Decarbonisation of the airport, as part of this project, is important to the Orkney community, which is an exemplar early-adopter for other low-carbon technology, and are leaders in decarbonisation, lead by one of the SATE project members, Orkney-based **EMEC**. This test environment offers a number of integrated energy-system opportunities providing significant wider impacts for potential adoption at other regional airports, which is a focus of team member **HITRANS**. The supply chain and future business opportunity interests are represented by Caithness-based battery manufacturers - **Denchi Group** and Orkney-based **Cloudnet ,**specialists in providing digital services for poorly served rural communities. The people skills necessary to support the development, testing and maintenance of the new technologies are of interest to project team members - **Air Training Services** and the **UHI**. If successful, this project should stimulate inward investment and local supply chain business opportunities in this remote part of the UK, a key responsibility for **Highlands & Islands Enterprise.** Local community acceptance of new aircraft technology, especially on lifeline services, and the potential impact on their local economy and wellbeing will also be measured, and a local community engagement programme is key to this projects success.

H2GO Power energy storage solutions are zero-emission end-to-end technologies with the principle of storing renewable energy in the form of Hydrogen. H2GO offers benefits over existing storage technologies (such as longer duration storage, longer lifetimes, safety with enhanced storage capacity at low-pressures). This project proposes 'making the hardware smart' by integrating an energy management system with predictive algorithms using AI that has the ability to predict future electricity generation based on weather forecasts, predict electricity prices and user demand. This communication platform will have the capability to translate the understanding from the environment such predicting weather-based future generation with repeating user demand patterns, whilst using the enabling character of hydrogen storage for long duration storage as an optimisation bridge to allow reliability, resilience and accuracy in responding to demand. Without a platform like this, the storage assets will be mechanical and operated on as back-up solution only rather than and integral part of operation. HyAI, with its hybrid nature, has the potential to increase power reliability and encourage further adoption of renewables and unleash greater flexibility to be available to grid operators. This project proposes to develop an innovative technology using existing H2GO storage units, in collaboration with Imperial College London, and deploy it on a customer data (EMEC) from a testing site, Isle of Eday in Orkney, who are also part of the consortium. This project will show that it has the ability to enhance grid operational capacities, that do not exist as yet with hydrogen and can create a digital tool that grid operators look upon favourably with mass roll out to allow further penetration of zero carbon generating assets into the UK grid.

ZeroAvia is developing a hydrogen fuel cell powertrain for light aircraft and plan to demonstrate principal technology readiness by mid-2020, by flying a 6-seater plane 300 nautical miles, equivalent to London-Edinburgh. The commercial market entry will be with a sub-regional aircraft with increased range in 2022, providing a zero-emission and 50%-cheaper alternative. The project brings together a unique group of innovative UK organisations with the aim of enabling a potentially transformational shift to zero-emission aviation, whilst reducing road and rail congestion, cutting air pollution and noise, supporting regional regeneration and creating greater choice and convenience for consumers.

To develop new electrolyser systems using precious-metal free electrodes optimised for use with renewable energy. To develop electrodes via rapid screen-printing, reducing the capital cost component of hydrogen production.

"The energy system in Orkney is subject to specific constraints, and its independent location means it is the ideal location to demonstrate the capabilities of a self-contained smart energy network, and the potential impact it can deliver. Orkney is a representation of energy supply problems which energy networks find difficult to solve using traditional technology. Specifically; Orkney produces 130% of the electricity it needs through existing installed renewable generation, yet 63% of Orkneys residents live in fuel poverty. Project **ReFLEX** will install **FLEX**ible technologies to address the restrictions which cause this imbalance and demonstrate a **Re**sponsive Virtual Energy System which links these networks together. Thus, allowing production to be maximised, efficiencies to be recovered, and new business models to be proven, meaning energy can be supplied at minimum cost to the consumer and generating knowledge which will allow us to replicate activity and impact across the UK and internationally. The project will last for 36 months and include the installation and operation of multiple technologies including: \*Vehicle to grid charging infrastructure \*Building management systems \*Virtual power plant systems \*Integrated Grid-smart community-led transport system and infrastructure \*Smart Heating Controllers A Virtual Energy System will combine the above infrastructure to demonstrate the capabilities of a smart energy system.

Offshore wind is proving very attractive for operators, especially due to the higher yields and less resistance from onshore homeowners and stakeholders. It is predicted that it could provide all the UK's electricity requirement, with minimal emission and visual impacts. However, there exist a major barrier to further exploitation due to the high levelised cost of electricity (LCOE) from offshore wind (£140/MWhr), which is 2-3 times higher than other key renewable sources (onshore wind and solar) and nuclear (a large non-renewable, but low emission source). The high LCOE is caused by the severe environmental conditions, which results in high operational, reliability and maintenance (O&M) costs, with the seabed turbine foundations (largely monopiles) accounting for over 25% of all lifecycle O&M costs, often caused by marine biofouling. Current methods of fouling prevention (dangerous: diver-deployed cleaning tools such as brushes and power jets) or ROVs (high annual costs ~ £30k/MW) are proving very costly and ineffective -- creating the need for an innovative solution to tackle this problem. The project will develop a fouling management system consisting of a mobile survey and cleaning robot that will eliminate the need for divers and ROVs. The robot will be placed on the turbine structure at sea level and will journey down below sea level to the work place. The robot will travel autonomously over the entire subsea monopile surface, imaging the fouling in real time. It will simultaneously activate its cleaning function at every fouled location and remove the fouling with an innovative guided power ultrasound technique. On returning to the sea surface the robot would simply be transported to the next turbine scheduled for treatment, and the cycle repeated. Overall O&M costs will be reduced by at least 50% compared with present diver/ROV techniques. This would mean a £7/MW (5%) reduction in LCOE.

"Offshore wind energy has been instrumental in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and rendering the UK less dependent on imports to cover its energy needs. As such, large investment programmes and favourable legislation have been driving growth in the sector with overall capacity doubling every five years, a trend that is set to continue by 2030. However, offshore wind energy costs remain high and the increasing depth and distance from the shore continue to drive maintenance costs up, particularly those associated with accessing the turbines for maintenance crews. In particular, dealing with marine growth through traditional means (i.e. manually cleaning the access ladders) becomes increasingly costly, challenging, dangerous, and ineffective. CleanWinTur will automate this process with a permanently installed system that will utilise techniques such as ultrasound, UV-C and thermal sterilisation to prevent marine growth on the access ladders, reducing respective costs and dangers.

"The overall aim of the HyDIME project is to design, integrate and trial an innovative hydrogen / diesel dual fuel conversion system for a 50kW diesel auxiliary power unit on a car ferry operating between Shapinsay and Kirkwall in Orkney. The project will last 12 months and result in: * The physical integration and proof of concept of the hydrogen conversion system working on a commercial ferry * The demonstration and testing of the system in accelerated sea trials to gain approval for the integration and usage of Hydrogen in a commercial vessel * The delivery of a scale up plan that outlines how the adapted ferry can interface with and optimally harness the 'Surf & Turf' Hydrogen production system in Orkney and how this can be effectively replicated across the UK. HyDIME will build on the outcomes from 2 previous innovation projects: the 'Surf n' Turf' project in Orkney, which has enabled excess energy produced from wind and tidal turbines to be harnessed and channelled through an electrolyser to produce hydrogen at the Shapinsay port; and the 'SWISH2 & LHNE project' which provided a feasibility study into the viability of a dual hydrogen injection system on road applications"

PITCHES will demonstrate the feasibility of a hydrogen economy in a remote community. PITCHES will deploy and demonstrate an integrated hydrogen solution, including renewably-powered generation, delivery and use of hydrogen, in the Orkney Islands. The project will put in place systems to transport hydrogen from 2 generation locations to a number of end uses, providing electricity to the Kirkwall harbour district, heating local buildings and fuelling a fleet of fuel cell electric vehicles. The PITCHES project will explore the replicability of such systems to isolated, off-grid communities, including in Sub Saharan Africa, by testing configurations of the system, and identifying business models which best suit off-grid communities in developing countries. PITCHES will demonstrate that existing hydrogen technologies can be used to develop a new energy system to meet transport, electricity and heating needs of remote communities, showing that hydrogen based energy systems have the potential to reduce reliance on imported fuels, reduce carbon emissions, and in future as the technology develops, to reduce energy costs.

Offshore renewable energy such as tidal, wave and offshore wind is an increasingly important part of the UK energy supply. However, there are challenges when it comes to operating in an offshore environment. Cable infrastructure can be vulnerable to being dragged or worn. Installation, repair and maintenance operations are all costly. The cable transmission capacity can limit the amount of energy taken from a device or device array. This project seeks to investigate the feasibility of two types of sensor technology measuring a wide range of cable parameters, that can operate over the optical communications fibre that is already present in most power cables. These systems can provide real time monitoring of electrical performance and also the physical condition of offshore cabling infrastructure. The expected outcome from the project are sensor subsystem designs that have been validated in the laboratory and in samples of marine power cable at partner test sites. This will allow the UK team to move forward to larger scale development and testing with a core of large industry partners

Wave, tidal and offshore floating wind arrays could supply a significant amount (up to 20%) of the UK's energy needs. However, current weaknesses in mooring lines present a barrier for developers who are attempting to harness and exploit this energy source. This project is focused on investigating the feasibility of producing state-of-the-art multi-material hybrid end and in-line rope connectors. The components will incorporate a higher strength, lightweight corrosion resistant metal core with a high wear resistant nylon surface. To date multi-material solutions have never been used in these components and this will enhance the in-service life of the ropes. This will ultimately increase durability, reliability and productivity of the energy device as well as reduce maintenance and costs whilst improving safety.

To develop a Technology Assessment Process as an integrated evaluation and development pathway for early stage wave and tidal technology developers, contributing to the significant technical and commercial de-risking of technology development and ensuring a more focused development pathway.

Offshore renewable energy such as tidal, wave and offshore wind is an important part of the UK energy supply and is becoming more so. However there are challenges when it comes to operating in an offshore or marine environment. The cable infrastructure can be vulnerable to being dragged or worn. The transmission capacity can limit the ammount of energy taken from a device or device array. Repair of offshore cables or infrastructure is costly. This project seeks to investigate the feasibiity of combining two types of sensor technology on a shared optical fibre network that can provide real time monitoring of electrical performance and also the physical condition of a cable in a marine energy project. The proposed system would use pre- existing optical fibre already on the installed power cable to opticallly interrogate electrical sensors and to also perform as a dsitributed sensor The expected outcome from the project is a system level design with technical and commercial development plan to fully exploit this technology.

The flow through tidal passages is, by nature, extremely turbulent and this flow speed variability affects the reliability and efficiency of energy extraction and the operational risks for in-stream turbines. The accurate measurement and numerical modelling of turbulence for these conditions is, therefore, important for designing and deploying any tidal technology and assessing the risk and cost of operation. InSTREAM is co-funded by the Offshore Energy Research Association, a Nova Scotia based not-for-profit research group, and InnovateUK, a government-funded business and innovation organization. The Government of Canada (NRC-IRAP) has provided additional funding to the Canadian partners while in Europe, the project was recently given the prestigious EUREKA label designation. The objectives of the InSTREAM project are to develop a set of sensors and methods that can be used at tidal energy sites as well as laboratory-scale simulators, and measure turbulence over a wide range of temporal and spatial scales to capture time-averaged turbulence quantities as well as turbulent intermittency. The latter is important for understanding occurrence rates of extreme loading events. InSTREAM will feature a sensor system that combines standard flow measurement technology (i.e., acoustic and electro-magnetic) with novel non-acoustic measurement technology (i.e., shear probes) to create a system that is useful for turbulence bservations in both laboratory and field applications. The system will be deployed at three sites: at the (1) FloWaveTT Energy Research Facility in Edinburgh to test and validate the laboratory configuration; (2) EMEC’s Fall-of-Warness site as a first field location; (3) at the FORCE Minas Passage site as the second field location. In terms of instrumentation, the InSTREAM addresses shortcomings of existing measurement technology to reliably and consistently resolve high-wave number turbulent velocity scales, in laboratory and tidal channel settings. The InSTREAM deployment methodology allows “real-world” field measurements to be down-translated to tank-scale measurements and vice-versa, providing developers and manufacturers the ability to evaluate dynamic behaviour of sites and turbine designs at model scale and full scale. The results from this applied research project address technical challenges that ultimately reduce uncertainties in site design, yield assessments, and device design, leading to improved cost structure and access to financing by reducing economic risk

To develop underwater acoustic expertise to meet the demands of the emerging marine renewables sector.