Sea Technology

SEP 2012

The industry's recognized authority for design, engineering and application of equipment and services in the global ocean community

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The east coast also provides a con- sistent, albeit not as large, contribu- tion. Tidal energy is most abundant in the Kimberley region in Western Australia and Banks Strait off Tasma- nia; ocean currents off the east coast of Australia; and ocean thermal energy off the coast of far north Queensland. The report estimated 8 terawatt-hours per year for a King Sound (Kimberley, Western Australia) barrage scheme and 0.13 terawatt-hours per year at most for a Banks Strait tidal-stream project. Additional work needs to be done to better quantify the available extract- able power from tidal flows. Nontidal ocean current energy was found to be the least technically and economically viable. But its 44 ter- awatt-hours per year potential is large enough to attract commercial interest. WindServer Vessels to be Classed For Offshore Wind Farm Service Germanischer Lloyd (Hamburg, Germany), which released in May the first comprehensive set of classifica- tion rules for crew boats and offshore wind farm service craft, announced in August that it will class the order of six of the new Fjellstrand AS (Omastrand, Norway) WindServers: two 30-meter and four 25-meter vessels, built by Fjellstrand for World Marine Offshore A/S (Esbjerg, Denmark). The vessels will have a speed of 25 knots and the capacity to carry 25 and 12 service personnel, respectively. They are scheduled to enter service in March 2013. The Fjellstrand WindServer is de- signed to improve access to offshore wind-turbine installations in rough weather, improve fuel efficiency, en- sure the safety of personnel and reduce running costs. The vessels will be equipped with four engines that power two control- lable pitch propellers and ballasting systems for shifting between rough- weather and lightweight-transit modes. A fixed stabilization foil adds stability as an integrated motion-damping de- vice intended to reduce construction and maintenance costs by avoiding complex active motion control sys- tems. Scotland Launches Its First Marine Energy Park The U.K. government designated the Pentland Firth and Orkney area as www.sea-technology.com SEPTEMBER 2012 / st 73 Scotland's first marine energy park in July. The venture will include the Euro- pean Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in Orkney, where wave and tidal devices are presently being tested. Scottish Energy Minister Fergus Ew- ing said the official launch of the park would enhance Scotland's position in the marine renewables industry, the BBC reported. The Scottish government has com- mitted more than £30 million to ma- rine renewable energy, including in- vestment in EMEC, and has invested further in the sector with the £18-mil- lion Marine Renewables Commerciali- sation Fund, the BBC reported. More than 25 marine energy leases have been awarded in Scotland thus far, said Aquamarine Power, the com- pany that engineered Oyster wave- power technology, which captures en- ergy in nearshore waves and converts it to electricity. To encourage investment in the Pentland Firth and Orkney area, the company suggested tax incentives and accelerated capital allowances. n

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