The Royal Society of Edinburgh FrancoBritish Conference in partnership with the French Embassy, in association with the SuperGen

UK Centre for Marine Energy Research

New Waves in Marine Energy

Tuesday & Wednesday 4 & 5 June 2013 Report by Eliette Riera Executive Summary The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE), in partnership with the Science and Technology Department of the French Embassy in London, in association with the SuperGen UK Centre for Marine Energy Research (UKCMER), and with the collaboration of France Energies Marines (FEM), hosted a FrancoBritish conference on Marine Energy on June 4th and 5th, 2013. This event, gathering almost thirty high-calibre speakers from both countries, representing the complete spectrum of stakeholders of the field, academics, policy makers, regulators, and industrials, helped give an audience of around 100 people a wide overview of this thriving renewable energy sector. France and the UK share a strong maritime history, as they are two nations resolutely turned towards their shores. With the development of marine transports, fishing, trade, aquaculture, tourism and offshore oil and gas exploitation, the relationship with the sea has always been strong for both countries. Given the imperative to decarbonise the energy supply chain and the rich renewable resources available, it seems only natural that wave and tidal energies would be next. The French Environment & Energy Management Agency (ADEME) asserts that much of Europes marine energy resources are to be found off the coasts of the British Isles and France. The technically exploitable wave and tidal current resource around Brittany and Normandy could supply over 50 TWh/year from around 18 GW of generating capacity. A study published by the UK Carbon Trust estimates that the practical tidal current resource that could be extracted from UK waters without significant impact on the overall resource or the environment is around 21 TWh/year from 10 GW of installed plant. A similar capacity of wave generation in the UK could supply around 40 TWh annually. The UK and France are pioneers in the early deployment and grid connection of marine energy generation. RenewablesUK estimates that, if the sector is developed, wave and tidal energy technologies could be worth 6.1 billion to the UK economy by 2035, creating nearly 20,000 jobs. Scotland, in particular, has led the development of marine energy since the 1970s, with the government and industries now showing strong support to this developing sector. There is a range of activity in France, from strong academic research to demonstration and deployment projects. Some projects are currently ongoing between these two countries, such as the Marine Energy in Far Peripheral and Island Communities (MERiFIC) Project in Cornwall. However, there is considerable scope to extend and add to these collaborations and this was the theme of the Conference. During the Conference almost all discussions took place under the common theme of meeting the challenges of the imminent deployment of the first arrays through bilateral

cooperation and sharing knowledge in marine energy research, in areas such as upscaling, deployment, environmental studies, standardisation, resource assessment and numerical modelling. Overview of the Proceedings i. Presentation of the field in France and the UK On the first day of the Conference, opened by Sir John Arbuthnott, President of the RSE, Mr Pierre-Alain Coffinier, General Consul of France in Edinburgh, and Professor Robin Wallace, Chair of the SuperGen UKCMER, gave a thorough presentation of the sector in France and in the UK. Starting with a general overview, Mr David Krohn (RenewableUK), Mr Yann-Herv de Roeck (FEM), speaking on behalf of the ADEME, and Mr Henry Jeffrey (University of Edinburgh, on behalf of the Ocean Energy System (OES) Programme of the International Energy Agency (IEA)) presented the UK, French and international background. Delegates were then introduced to the relevant research organisation in the UK (SuperGen UKCMER, Professor Ian Bryden) and France (FEM, Mr Yann-Herv de Roeck), as well as the European framework, with a presentation on the European Energy Research Alliance (Mr Henry Jeffrey). This introduction stressed the continuing importance of public funding, through which governments can send a strong and clear signal to investors and help propagate private funding in these new technologies. A number of British-based companies have received both British and European funding for the deployment of first arrays (namely through the Department of Energy and Climate Changes (DECC) Marine Energy Array Demonstrator (MEAD) competition and EUs NER 300 funding). However, some uncertainties remain in the context of the Electricity Market Reform, and discussion continues about the Contracts for Difference. Another issue faced by UK developers may be the submarine cable installation and network connection, as the highest resources can be in deep water offshore from geographically remote locations. Early projections are that, with sustained support, there could be 50 MW of installed capacity by 2020. France enjoys a strong electricity network, and the grid is less of an issue. However, licensing processes can be a bit more complex, and may delay or even maybe put off investments. But thanks to both public and private funding (e.g. EDF), they expect to have the first array grid connected in Paimpol-Brhat by 2014. The main point stressed in the ADEMEs introduction was the importance of the collaboration between MRE developers and the offshore wind sector, as they require a similar pool of skills, and may well be deployed in the same areas at the same time. The importance of collaboration, mentioned by Mr Krohn and De Roeck early on, was stressed again in the presentation of the OES Programme of the Institute for Energy Systems (IES). The aim of this event was summed up by Mr Jeffrey: Competition is healthy, collaboration is essential. The OESs role is to connect, educate, inspire and facilitate research in ocean energies. Although France is not yet a member of the OES Group, 20 countries (amongst which are some of the most influential countries in the world such as the US, the UK, Germany, Canada and Japan) are already working together in this programme to ensure efficient cooperation, and the creation of common regulations. ii. Afternoon sessions The afternoon sessions began with breakout sessions on standards and commercialisation and on environmental monitoring, followed by extensive presentations on tank and sea testing technologies and installations.

1. Standards and Commercialisation Marine energy devices are still a young technology, and many challenges will remain before they can be successfully taken to a commercial stage. Comparing different devices fairly mandates the need for common standards and regulations, for researchers, investors and other stakeholders. This session presented different ways to approach this subject, from the views of EDF in France (Ms Marta Nogaj, EDF) to European FP7 Research projects such as the EquiMar Programme (Professor David Ingram, University of Edinburgh), along with the IEC standards (Mr Henry Jeffrey, University of Edinburgh) and DNV studies (Mr Ben Waldron, Det Norske Veritas BV). These studies often focus on protocol, device classification and the consideration of the various risks linked to these technologies and their mitigation. 2. Environmental Monitoring The environmental impact of MRE devices is an omnipresent issue, and being able to monitor this impact is a key part of the deployment of marine energy devices. Both France (FEM, presented by Mr Phil Monbet, and the French Research Institute for exploitation of the Sea (IFREMER), with Mr Antoine Carlier) and the UK (Dr Annie Linley, Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), and Dr Ben Wilson, Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland (MASTS)) have been conducting environmental studies in the areas where devices will most likely be deployed, and this session allowed speakers to compare methods and results. The importance of a wide collaboration was stressed by the participants. 3. Tank and Sea Testing Testing is one of the most crucial steps of the development of a marine energy device. As stressed by the speakers during this session, developers have to test their devices, again and again, and then test them some more. There is a wide variety of testing facilities, both indoor and outdoor, spread across Europe, and especially in France and in the UK. Sea testing was introduced with a presentation of the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC, Mr Max Carcas) in the UK, and an overview of Frances sea-trial test sites, along with a more detailed overview of the SEM-REV test site (Mr Sbastien Ybert, FEM/ Laboratoire de recherche en Hydrodynamique, nergtique et Environnement Atmosphrique (LHEEA), Ecole Centrale de Nantes). In the UK, Mr Stuart Brown (FlowaveTT) and Professor Deborah Greaves (Plymouth University) presented on state-of-the-art tanks in Edinburgh and Plymouth. Finally, Mr Luc Simon (RTSys) talked about RTSys technologies and methods for the underwater noise measurement.

iii. Roundtables The first day of the conference was concluded by three roundtables, allowing participants and speakers to share views and debate about some key subjects of the Marine Energy sector: tank and sea testing, environmental monitoring, and capacity and skills building. Those discussions were once again placed under the challenge of the deployment of the first arrays, and the ongoing evolution of the sector. In particular, the debate on capacity and skills building raised a number of interesting issues, such as the education of tomorrows marine energy professionals. If MRE technologies are to help the sector reach the ambitious objectives set for 2020 or even 2030, a significant number of engineers and technicians will be needed. Tomorrows engineers are todays students, and the question of their education is a key point in the success of the field. In the UK, the SuperGen Phases 1 & 2, and now UKCMER, have trained students for and in the sector for eight years, joined more recently by the Industrial Doctoral Centre for Offshore Renewable Energy (IDCORE) programme. UKCMER hosts seasonal schools across the UK. The idea of a bilateral summer school was raised, and received with great enthusiasm from both France and the UK.

iv. Second day The conference continued on June 5th with two sessions about the future of the sector and the challenges of the first arrays. These talks featured an interesting mix of major companies such as Siemens, Alstom and DCNS, and their focus on the imminent deployment of first arrays, and on Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and their important role in the support functions such as numerical modelling, noise measurement, environmental characteristics studies, etc. 1. Upscaling and Array Development This first session focused on demonstration arrays and development, allowed some major companies to present their projects and plans for the deployment and the commercialisation of their devices. This included ScottishPower Renewables (Mr Alan Mortimer), Pelamis Wave Power (Mr Ross Henderson), Alstom Ocean Energy (Mr Ken Street), DCNS (Mr Yvan Coutzac) and Marine Current Turbines (Dr Scott J Couch). Such projects presented a wide range of benefits, especially in terms of jobs, and the need for qualified people was once again stressed by the speakers. The academic sector was also represented by Dr Jean-Frdric Charpentier, who introduced his work at the French Naval Academy, helping to improve the efficiency and reliability of tidal devices. The importance of both private and public funding was once again stressed in these presentations, showing the results that investments from both the government and companies could achieve. The opportunities for FrancoBritish collaboration in this field were also identified, with the roadmaps aiming at the deployment of the first arrays in 2015 2016, to pool skills from both sides of the channel and help achieve these ambitious objectives. 2. Numerical Modelling and Resource Assessment MRE development relies on the marine environment as well as on tidal and wave resources. However, the arduous offshore environment in which these devices have to be installed is slowly being appreciated. It is also important to choose carefully the location for one or several devices, in order to benefit from the waves and the tides in the most effective way. The last four speakers introduced their studies on resource assessment (Mr Jrme Cuny, Open Ocean), numerical modelling for MRE engineering (Mr Hakim Mouslim, INNOSEA) and modelling of arrays (Dr David Forehand, University of Edinburgh), illustrating how more flexible and accurate models can be used to predict device behaviour. Finally, Mr Christophe Maisondieu, from IFREMER, gave the final talk of this workshop, presenting the MARiNE project, a FrancoBritish collaboration on resource assessment and mapping in French and British island communities.

v. Closing Remarks Mr Yann-Herv De Roeck, Executive Director of FEM, closed the Conference symposium with a few quotations and relevant remarks. First of all, he reminded the audience of the conclusions after the first days roundtables, which gave clues for new and rapid collaboration between our two countries. He said there is no wealth but men (from French author Baudin; sometimes attributed to Adam Smith), echoing the need for qualified staff to support the marine energy sector, and the importance of summer schools and short training programmes raising awareness for students from both countries. He followed up by reminding the audience that we do not inherit the Earth from our parents, we borrow it from our children (Antoine de St Exupry; may also be an Indian proverb), stressing the importance of the exchange of environmental data to help define appropriate and efficient environmental monitoring methods. Finally, experience is simply the name we give to our

mistakes (Oscar Wilde), addressing the topic of testing and its normalisation, so that a test performed in any tank, sea site or laboratory could be recognised as a valid step in the development towards commercialisation of a device. He stressed the need for a common policy and the promotion of testing, validation and adoption.

Conclusions The Marine Energy sector, still a young field amongst renewable energies, is facing a number of challenges to reach its full potential in the next few years, culminating in the deployment and exploitation of the first arrays around 2015. France and the UK share a similar approach to these challenges, relying on an effective partnership between private and public sector, as well as policy makers. In France, this task is overviewed by a private public agency: FEM, which aims at becoming a world-class cluster in the field of MREs. The SuperGen UKCMER in the UK gathers 16 of the most prestigious universities, conducting research in this field, all the while maintaining close links with industry and the government. The importance of SMEs (for example universities spin-offs such as INNOSEA in France) in R&D for marine energies was stressed, as many studies are under way in these companies, and their work is key to the development of supporting technologies for the field (for example, numerical modelling, resource assessment, noise monitoring, etc.). Even though the Marine Energy sector has made tremendous progress in the past ten years, as was stressed by Mr Max Carcas when presenting ten years of work at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC), every speaker agreed that there is a strong need for continued support in R&D. Many issues have still to be solved, and it is crucial that research continues to accelerate deployment, monitor and mitigate environmental impacts, and ensure safe maintenance and operation. As stressed by Professor Robin Wallace at the end of the event, this Conference, though it was not the first example of FrancoBritish collaboration, had identified extremely valuable opportunities for improved bilateral collaborations in marine energy.

Opinions expressed here do not necessarily represent the views of the RSE, nor of its Fellows The Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotlands National Academy, is Scottish Charity No. SC000470