O4S

Accelerating Offshore Energy Transition: Netherlands and Flanders Launch OFFSHORE FOR SURE Project

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In the coming years, renewable energy at sea will receive a significant boost. Fifteen partners from Flanders and the Netherlands are pooling their expertise in the Offshore For Sure project to test five promising energy solutions and enhance their applicability in the energy system. The project’s objective is to accelerate the energy transition at sea and drive the sustainable blue economy in collaboration with knowledge institutions, regional, and societal organizations. The Interreg Flanders-Netherlands program for 2021-2027 supports this collaboration.

During the three-year duration of the project, the project partners will invest more than 10 million euros in the Flemish-Dutch border region. This investment is made possible in part by the European Interreg Flanders-Netherlands program and co-financiers. The consortium believes that these offshore energy solutions will contribute to a smarter, greener, and more co-operative Europe. BLUESPRING is the initiator behind the Offshore For Sure project idea and acts as the project coordinator.

Five Innovations and Supporting Partners

The five demonstration projects represent innovative solutions from technology developers with a proven track record and a clear plan for deployment in the fields of tidal energy, wave energy, offshore floating solar energy, and energy storage:

For their developments, the technology developers can rely on the knowledge and expertise of partners Bluespring, World Class Maintenance, International Marine; Dredging Consultants, Ecopower, Rijkswaterstaat, Parkwind, Ghent University, HOWEST, Deftiq, and the Zeeland Environmental Federation.

Collaboration Focused on Three Domains

Activities in the project have strong ties to the regions where they are conducted and have both local and international impact. Therefore, we are developing various services for different groups to maximize the gained experience and apply it internationally.

Policy & Public Engagement

As a significant portion of the developments take place at sea, outside the view of residents and their living environment, we aim to involve people in the projects, exchange knowledge, and thereby increase support and awareness. We work closely with nature and environmental organizations, cooperatives, and similar projects.

Education

We are developing learning trajectories, including online and hybrid courses, based on the knowledge acquired during the project’s implementation. We promote student exchange and establish collaboration between educational partners in Flanders and the Netherlands.

Certification

We are working on certification services for testing in laboratories and at sea to ensure the efficiency and robustness of the developed systems.

Sustainable Perspective

The yield of our offshore energy transition is assessed by three types of end users: governments, project developers, and citizen cooperatives. Through their approval of our business cases, we attract further investments for both technology and projects. This should lead to bankable projects for the future, contributing to economic growth in the region and creating new jobs in the sustainable blue economy.

Stay informed or get involved

Are you interested in becoming involved as a stakeholder in the implementation of the project, or would you like to stay informed about the developments of Offshore For Sure? We invite you to express your interest.

Go to contact form

For more information:
Bluespring BV
Sia Windig – Head of Communications
sia.windig@bluespring.blue
+31 6 49 83 81 64

About the OFFSHORE FOR SURE Project: www.OffshoreForSure.eu

OFFSHORE FOR SURE receives funding from the Interreg Flanders-Netherlands 2021-2027 program VI, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund under subsidy contract number Int6B015. Additionally, the Ministry of Economic Affairs in the Netherlands, the Dutch provinces of Zeeland, North Brabant, and South Holland, as well as the Flemish Agency for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (VLAIO) and the province of East Flanders provide financial support.

About INTERREG FLANDERS-NETHERLANDS:
Interreg Flanders-Netherlands subsidizes projects with shared borders for smart, green, and inclusive growth. Interreg Flanders-Netherlands has received over 205 million euros from the European Regional Development Fund (EFRO) to invest in valuable projects between 2021 and 2027.

About the Partners:

  • BLUESPRING: has extensive experience in managing complex, long-term international collaboration projects in the field of offshore renewable energy, with a specialization in certification.
  • Parkwind N.V.:  is a green energy company that develops, finances, and operates offshore wind farms. With over ten years of experience and 771 megawatts under operational management, Parkwind has four operational wind farms in Belgium and is currently developing the Arcadis Ost I project in Germany (257 MW).
  • Ecopower: a citizen cooperative, has been dedicated to building a democratic, decentralized, and sustainable energy system through citizen participation for over 30 years. With 67,000 cooperative members and 55,000 customers, Ecopower has invested over 100 million euros in wind, solar, sustainable heat, and hydropower projects.
  • Rijkswaterstaat Offshore Expertise Centre (RWS): Rijkswaterstaat Offshore Expertise Centre provides platforms at wind farms in the North Sea with sensors to collect a wide variety of data. These sensors contribute to monitoring marine ecosystems and maritime safety and cybersecurity.
  • Dutch Wave Power: develops a point absorber wave energy converter and has extensive testing experience at, among others, MARIN and Deltares. The technology of Dutch Wave Power consists of a floating body with all energy conversion components completely sealed off from seawater. The floating body moves with the rotating motion of the waves.
  • Water2Energy Projects BV: develops a vertical-axis tidal turbine and has successfully conducted pilots in the Port of Antwerp and the port of Vlissingen as part of the ENCORE project. With 30 years of experience in shipbuilding and offshore technology, and 15 years in the field of tidal turbines.
  • FLASC: develops an energy storage system that utilizes hydropneumatic pressure (HPES). Electricity is stored by pumping seawater into a closed chamber where the compressed air further compresses it. The energy is recovered when the compressed air forces the seawater out through the same pump turbine.
  • Tocardo: is a supplier and developer of free-flowing tidal energy turbines with a pre-commercial dam-integrated plant in the Eastern Scheldt storm surge barrier since 2015.
  • Offshore Solar BV: (part of Oceans of Energy, OOE) is a Dutch company specializing in the design, construction, and operation of offshore solar energy systems since 2016. They also conduct research on ecological impacts and energy systems. OOE now has four years of experience in offshore solar under offshore conditions, positioning them at the forefront of the industry worldwide. OOE operates the pilot project NS2, which is operational at the Offshore Test Site, located 12 km off the coast of Scheveningen.
  • World Class Maintenance (WCM): is the network for ‘smart maintenance’ in the Netherlands. Their goal is ambitious: to achieve 100% predictable maintenance. WCM achieves this by developing, disseminating, and applying smart maintenance knowledge. Key pillars include the WCM Fieldlab projects, which challenge entire sectors to accelerate innovations through collaborative experimentation.
  • International Marine and Dredging Consultants (IMDC): is an international engineering and consulting firm specializing in natural waters: precipitation, groundwater, rivers, estuaries, coastal areas, ports, marine waters, offshore energy, and power cables. IMDC employs more than 110 specialists. Since 2000, IMDC has been assisting government agencies, project developers, and contractors in the realization of complex offshore energy projects: offshore substations, submarine electricity cables, fixed and floating offshore wind, tidal, and wave energy projects.
  • Environmental Federation of Zeeland (ZMf): is the organization dedicated to nature, environment, and sustainability in Zeeland. This means advocating for important and vulnerable nature, also on behalf of the 26 affiliated organizations and over 600 individual members. They are building towards a balanced future by promoting sustainable initiatives and working towards a circular society. Their strength lies in connecting people and ideas, and they have a growing positive impact on their surroundings. This impact sometimes extends beyond national borders, working with Flemish partners to create a healthier living environment.
  • Ghent University (UG): strongly focuses on the development of knowledge and research in the field of sustainable blue economy. The Department of Civil Engineering (Coastal Engineering Research Group) and Soete Laboratory contribute their expertise and facilities to support the innovations. Ghent University coordinates the Education and Training activities in the project. With The Reef, an innovative XR Training Lab at Ostend Science Park, the university, along with HOWEST, provides a perfect location for collaboration between knowledge partners and businesses.
  • HOWEST (University College West Flanders): is a University College for Applied Sciences and Arts, an institution for higher education located in West Flanders, Belgium. Howest is also deeply involved in innovation and R&D activities. Howest has technological expertise in a wide range of topics such as security and privacy, applied artificial intelligence, analytics, and machine learning in the cloud, Internet of Things, and human interface technologies.
  • Deftiq: develops targeted training programs for organizations and their technical professionals. These trainings are offered in Deftiq’s online learning environment. Deftiq’s aim is to make the acquired knowledge of O4S accessible through high-quality e-learning content.

With financial support of:

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Signing ceremonyHydroWing

HydroWing inks deal to support and develop tidal energy projects in Indonesia

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HydroWing signs MoU

Tocardo’s 50% shareholder has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with state-owned company Indonesia Power to support and develop tidal energy projects in Indonesia. The MoU between Indonesia Power and HydroWing, was signed early September 2022, it will accelerate tidal energy development in Indonesia through site identification, resource assessment and front-end engineering.

Increasing demand for renewables

With increasing cost of fossil fuels, energy transition from Diesel generators and coal power plants to renewable energies are vital for lots of remote islands in the eastern Indonesian archipelago. Both teams will jointly study selected sites in coming weeks to build a first of a kind business case and pilot project. Together with solar energy and battery storage, tidal energy will provide the baseload of a reliant and clean energy system. Teams have jointly visited the first site late September to prepare a resource assessment campaign to be organised before the end of 2022. This deployment will be the first tidal energy power plant in Indonesia.

Quotes

Ahsin Sidqi, Indonesia Power President Director said: “Right now Indonesia Power has 100 year O&M competency in Hydro, hopefully with this collaboration with Hydrowing as a technology provider, Indonesia Power obtains another new competency as a power generation company in the country, to become a trusted energy solution provider. Indonesia Power and Hydrowing together will explore more potential development of Tidal Power Plant in Indonesia.”

Richard Parkinson, HydroWing Managing Director said: “We view Indonesia as a prime market for our technology with an excellent resource and increasing demand for clean and reliable energy. This MOU with Indonesia Power, is pivotal for us and our local partners to move rapidly towards significant commercial scale projects in the Archipelago”

 

 

New Chief Technical Officer joined Tocardo

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Matt Reed

Matt Reed has been appointed as the new Chief Technical Officer at Tocardo and will take the lead on the development of the Tocardo T-2si turbine. Matt brings considerable experience to the team and was previously the Engineering Director for Marine Current Turbines and was instrumental in leading the development of the Seagen Project – the world’s first commercial tidal turbine. Matt has most recently been supporting HydroWing on the development of the Patented Turbine Control Hub under the ERDF Marine-I Program, developing a fully redundant control system for multiple turbine systems. On completion of this assignment he will transfer as CTO to Tocardo.

T-2si development

Tocardo are currently developing an upgraded version of the T-2 turbine called the T-2si – this has innovative control features allowing the turbines to produce higher yield beyond rated capacity using innovative control and blade technology. Matt will be supported by the Tocardo team and the parent companies HydroWing and QED Naval who are developing subsea tidal energy projects. Additionally, Matt will lead on supervising the ongoing developments at the OTP project in Zeeland.

Subhub with Tocardo T-1

QED Naval launches Seedrs crowdfunding campaign

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Crowdfunding campaign QED Naval

Tocardo’s shareholder QED Naval has launched a crowdfunding campaign to complete the deployment of its Subhub tidal platform and Tocardo T-1 turbines at Yarmouth Tidal Test Centre. QED launched the campaign, valued at £15 million, on the Seedrs platform, and is looking to supercharge the companies growth by bringing investors on board as shareholders.

Onshore testing completed

The turbines have been shipped autumn 2021 to Pembroke Dock for integration with the Subhub. After having mounted three Tocardo’s T-1 turbines onboard the Subhub platform at Mainstay Marine Solutions. QED Naval is now gearing up to deploy the community demonstrator (CD) device for real sea trials.

Yarmouth Tidal Test Centre

The upcoming trials will be done at the Yarmouth Tidal Test Centre. The purpose is to demonstrate how tidal energy can be quickly and cost-effectively deployed and maintained over large distances and a broad range of weather conditions. Furthermore, the trials will serve for the validation of associated design tools and processes.

About Subhub

The self-deploying foundation system Subhub is a platform designed to support the commissioning, testing, transportation, and installation of an array of tidal turbines. QED Naval’s self-deploying platform can cut costs of deploying and maintaining turbines by circa 60% and, by clever hydrodynamic design, can improve yields from the site by up to 48%.

Todays Changemakers week 25: Energy From Water

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Change Inc

We are pleased with the the Dutch organisation Change Inc. (Dutch content) they have decided to put some Dutch changemakers, including Tocardo’ CEO Andries van Unen, in the spotlight which are active in the Ocean Energy sector. Today’s Changemakers are frontrunners selected by their independent editors. Changemakers are people who show color, give direction and set the pace. From family businesses, multinationals, SMEs, start-ups and scale-ups. Every week Change Inc. put Changemakers in the spotlight. Because they know that every spark can make a big difference. Besides Tocardo also DMEC and REDstack are highlighted this week.

REDstack – Pieter Hack

Pieter Hack is founder and owner of REDstack. He wants to generate at least 500 MW of sustainable electricity in the Netherlands as soon as possible with a Blue Energy plant. And that this will be followed worldwide. REDstack is working intensively and successfully on the development, scaling up and future commercialisation of energy generation from differences in salinity, often referred to as Salinity Gradient Power (SGP).

DMEC – Britta Schaffmeister

Britta Schaffmeister is CEO of the Dutch Marine Energy Center (DMEC). She wants to bring technologies that extract energy from water to the market. DMEC is an accelerator for marine energy solutions. Ath DMEC they believe that the enormous amount of energy stored in our oceans, seas and rivers will be a crucial driver to realise our global energy transition and foster sustainable growth.

Morlais tidal siteTocardo

HydroWing to demonstrate next generation Tocardo Turbines at Morlais

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30 MW at Morlais

HydroWing Ltd have been awarded a berth with 30 MW potential at Morlais a tidal site located in Angelsey, Wales, and operated by Menter Môn. The company plans a phased approach starting with a commercial demonstrator project in 2023 which will be operated by HydroWing’s newly established Welsh entity: HydroWing Tidal Projects Ltd. The initial project looks to cement the technology at the site, grow the Welsh team and develop the essential strong local supply chains and stakeholder relations to subsequently enable roll out toward the full 30 MW.
The device will be installed using the recently acquired Inyanga Entsha the new Dynamically-Positioned (DP2) Multi-Purpose Vessel. The Entsha, powered by DC Electric Propulsion, offers 35% increased energy efficiency leading to very low fuel consumption and high reliability unlocking efficient processes for the HydroWing’s installation, Operation and Maintenance. The vessel is currently in Appledore, Devon, where it is being upgraded with intelligent launch and recovery systems. Inyanga Entsha in combination with Tocardo’s reliable turbines and a low-cost mobilisation strategy are key to ensuring that tidal energy can compete with other renewable energy technologies.

Inyanga Entsha

HydroWing will work closely with the local supply chain in North Wales to deliver this demonstration phase. This commitment is strengthened with the joining of Marine Energy Wales cluster in early 2022. The front-end engineering design is currently being undertaken and over the next months HydroWing will undertake detailed analysis and design to ensure optimised configuration of the turbines.

Tocardo Tidal Turbines

The HydroWing device has been inspired by the Tocardo’s flagship OTP Project and the world’s largest single installation of tidal turbines (5 turbines). This 1.25 MW project has operated on the Eastern Scheldt barrier since 2015 with turbines arranged on a wing in a similar configuration to the HydroWing. The proven long term robustness, reliability and remote-control capability gives confidence to developing arrays of turbines on HydroWing. The key advantages of these turbines, aside from the proven reliability, is the compact nature of the device, allowing low-cost logistics using standard containers.

Tocardo OTP

This project will demonstrate the next generation Tocardo T-2si Turbines configured into the HydroWing Structure. The new turbines will feature enhanced blade performance and control innovation to provide low cost, clean, predictable and reliable electricity to the Local Grid. The new turbines integrated with HydroWing configuration will reduce the CAPEX while retaining the excellent robust reliability for which Tocardo are renowned.

Tocardo T-2si

The five installed turbines on the Eastern Scheldt barrier have each accumulated 6 years of operation with 95% availability proving it to be a robust, reliable, and low-cost system with limited need for physical intervention- giving confidence to integrating these turbines into HydroWing’s subsea system to take advantage of tidal sector’s biggest market segment.

HydroWing Technology

The HydroWing is a multi-rotor subsea device with three turbines mounted on a wing like structure which is stabbed onto a sub-structure, a modular gravity-based frame mounted on the seabed.

The device can be a single or double wing, depending on the depth of water at the site. The key advantages of the technology are the enhanced redundancy of the multi-rotor system and the high packing density capable of extracting 275 MW/km² of seabed space with robust simplicity and reduced CAPEX. The Power is integrated through the patented Turbine Control Hub mounted in the wing and electrical/ data connection is via wet mate connectors, allowing quick and simple installation and recovery.

Quotes

Richard Parkinson, MD HydroWing: “We are very excited to demonstrate our HydroWing with the next generation Turbines at Morlais. Our key objective is to demonstrate that tidal energy can be cost competitive versus other renewable energy sources. We look forward to working with the local supply chain and collaborating with other developers at Morlais.”

Andries van Unen, CEO Tocardo: “For Tocardo, the development of the T-2si turbine marks an important milestone on the technology roadmap and will open the door to the offshore tidal market. With the HydroWing, our expertise, business partners and existing technology base, the Morlais project is the perfect stepping stone for Tocardo to determine our course and to claim our position in the market.”

Gerallt Llewelyn Jones, SRO Morlais Energy: “Morlais welcomes Inyanga and we look forward to a productive relationship in progressing this important industry and creating benefits for the local and regional economy.”

UK government announces investment into tidal power

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The UK government will invest £20 million per year in Tidal Energy

The UK government is backing tidal energy as part of its flagship renewable energy auction scheme, announcing today its biggest investment in a generation into tidal power. The UK government will invest £20 million per year in Tidal Stream electricity as part of its flagship renewable energy auction scheme, kickstarting a brand-new chapter for the tidal industry and creating jobs across the UK. Today’s announcement (24 November 2021) will unlock the potential for the emerging tidal power market.

AR4 – Contracts for Difference Scheme

As part of the fourth allocation round of the Contracts for Difference Scheme due to open next month, the UK government will ensure that £20 million per year will be ringfenced for Tidal Stream projects, giving the marine energy sector a chance to develop their technology and lower their costs in a similar way to the UK’s world-leading offshore wind industry. This will bring the total funding for this allocation round to £285 million per year.

Effects of this support mechanism: LCOE down

History has illustrated the effectiveness of the scheme’s design in keeping costs down – between the first allocation round in 2015 and the most recent round in 2019, the price per unit (MWh) of offshore wind fell by around 65%. Over time marine technologies have the potential to significantly contribute to our decarbonisation commitments and will supports hundreds of green jobs across the country, with projects currently in development in North-West Scotland, North Wales and the Southern coast of England.

34MW

Further details are not yet available but the headline is, assuming all other elements of the CfD framework remain unchanged, that £20m at the administrative strike price of £211/MWh enable the support of the installation of 34MW. This number is based  upon an analysis performed by Gavin Smart, ORE Catapult’s Head of Analysis & Insights

Complete story

You can find  the complete story here: Press release

Tocardo T-1

Shipment of three Tocardo T-1 tidal turbines

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Three T-1 turbines delivered in Pembroke

On behalf of the board of Tocardo BV I’m proud to share this news with the rest of the world.  After winning the tender last year, preparations, procurement, lots of manhours and persistence we have managed to ship three Tocardo T-1 tidal turbines. The bi-directional turbines have been successfully transported towards Pembroke dock where they will be installed on QED Naval’s Subhub community scale platform. The full systems integration will be conducted at the quayside. This is much safer and logistically easier than connecting up tidal turbine systems offshore.

The T-1 turbine

The T-1 is Tocardo’s community scale solution. By generating energy in a predictable and cost-effective way the T-1 is the best tidal turbine in its market segment with power outputs ranging from 40 to 100 kW. Due to its relatively small size, it can be installed in shallow waters (4 meters and deeper). The turbines are made to last with very minimal maintenance. The design lifetime is at least 20 years.

Cutting down LCOE

Logistics operations have a significant impact on the LCOE of our technology. We are convinced that it is better to install a larger number of medium sized turbines; turbines that can be brought to a (remote) project location by means of regular available (road) transport. The three Tocardo T-1’s will be utilized on the novel Subhub design. Subhub is a submersible, gravity based, foundation platform that supports every need of tidal turbines through life. After the system integration at the quayside the cost for the installation offshore is quite low because for the deployment QED Naval will be using low-cost harbor tugs only.

A big thank you

A big thank you goes out to: the team, contractors and all supply chain partners who helped us with their service and expertise to achieve this new milestone for Tocardo BV.

Maak kennis met marine energy innovaties

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De wereld achter het stopcontact

Kom ook naar Open Duurzame Energie Dag op zaterdag 11 september! Ontdek de wereld achter het stopcontact en de thermostaat. Waar komen elektriciteit en warmte eigenlijk vandaan? En hoe zorgen we ervoor dat die energie steeds schoner wordt? Ontdek het nu tijdens de Open Energie Dag.

Tocardo in samenwerking met DMEC

Wil je meer weten over Tocardo en onze getijdenstroomenergieturbines? Aanstaande zaterdag zullen ook wij ons bedrijf presenteren. Omdat onze locaties minder geschikt zijn om publiek te ontvangen, zullen wij ons presteren in Den Haag op het kantoor van Dutch Marine Energy Centre (DMEC). Hierbij nodigen we je uit voor de openstelling van het DMEC in de haven van Scheveningen.

Ook aanwezig

Behalve  het team van DMEC en Tocardo zullen ook andere bedrijven zich presenteren op deze locatie:

Open Duurzame Energie Dag

Op de Open Duurzame Energie Dag van de NVDE op worden duurzame energieprojecten in Nederland opengesteld voor het publiek. Zie ook de website van de NVDE voor alle locaties die op deze dag open gaan.

COVID-proof

Het event zal COVID-proof plaatsvinden. Er is genoeg ruimte in het pand van DMEC om afstand te houden, en de nodige hygiëne maatregelen zullen uiteraard worden getroffen.