Marine Renewable Energy at the All-Energy Expo

The sheer presence of marine renewables at the All-Energy conference was an encouraging  indication of where this fledgling industry is heading.  The companies represented at the expo included device developers, both established and startups, utilities, and a range of ancillary service providers, such as marine engineering and diving firms. In total, around 200 exhibitors had an interest in wave and tidal energy, with some 50 of those being dedicated to the industry.

The conference was opened by the Rt Hon Alex Salmond, First Minister of Scotland, who outlined his ambition for Scotland to be at the centre of the marine renewables industry, driving development, investment and job creation. Mr. Salmond launched a new GBP18 million Marine Renewables Commercialisation Fund designed to catalyse the installation of commercial-scale  Charles Hendry, Minister of State at the UK’s Department for Energy and Climate Change echoed this vision, noting that marine renewables, and other renewable energy technologies, can be drivers of economic growth, reinvigorating cities and towns with involvement in the supply chain. Huub den Rooijen, The Crown Estate’s first Head of Offshore Wind, discussed The Crown Estate’s role in facilitating development of marine renewables. The Crown Estate recently completed its latest leasing round, taking the total number of leases to 36.

A ‘scene setting’ session expanded on some of the practicalities of the marine renewables vision. Calum Davidson, Head of Energy at the University of Highlands and Islands again saw Scotland as the world leader, noting that the Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters is the largest in the world with 1.6GW of the UK’s 1.7GW pre-consented by the Crown Estate. and that more marine renewables are deployed at the European Marine Energy Centre than the rest of the world. 550 people are already employed in wave and tidal energy in Scotland, with some 250 in Orkney alone. However, Mr. Davidson pointed out limitations that must be overcome, such as limited port and supply chain capacity, and unfavourable electricity market reform. Chris Campbell from the Canadian Ocean Renewable Energy Group set out Canada’s ambitions in this field, with significant developments now coming to fruition in Nova Scotia. Mr. Cambell described regulatory processes around the world as a ‘nightmare’!

A strong Marine Scotland presence presented the extensive Marine Spatial Planning activities that have been undertaken to date. James McKie, Head of the Licensing team, noted that previously 5 licences/pieces of legislation applied to a marine renewable energy project. While there is now a ‘one-stop shop’ for licensing which reduces the regulatory burden and provides a focal point and facilitator, one audience member noted that the consenting processes still have a long way to go, saying that companies continue to face costly processes for approval. For example, Marine Current Turbines spent GBP3million on environmental monitoring to meet licence conditions. Marine Scotland will soon release a manual on licensing, which will hopefully begin to address these difficulties.

On a similar note, George Eustece MP made some comparisons between the relatively simple licensing processes and Norway and the slow and laborious processes in the UK. He cited the extensive consultation and reporting processes required by the Marine Management Organisation, the lengthy tendering processes for seabed leases from the Crown Estate and the excessive insurance requirements as reasons why it takes marine renewable energy developers such a long time to get their devices into the water. Clare Gibson reiterated this, saying there is a need for simplification of regulatory processes to help developers progress the industry.

Ross Fairley, a fellow lawyer from Burges Salmon provided a useful conceptualisation of the marine renewables industry, viewing it as various inputs represented by concentric circles emanating from the central focus - the technology.  Starting with technology at the core, next is the need for suitable deployments sites, and then the infrastructure to deliver the energy produced. Surrounding these elements is the need for a strong supply chain and supportive policy and regulation.