EMEC Shortlisted for Business Green Technology Awards

The European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC, UK) has been shortlisted for the ‘Marine Energy Technology of the Year’ award at the Business Green Technology Awards 2016. The Business Green Technology Awards programme celebrates start-ups and established technology and engineering companies who are ‘turning the dream of a sustainable green economy into a reality'. EMEC has invested in an electrolyser to convert tidal power to hydrogen.

The site build is currently underway and is due to be completed in early 2017. Building on this initiative, the ‘Surf ‘n’ Turf’ project – which sees EMEC partner with Community Energy Scotland, Eday Renewable Energy and Orkney Islands Council -  will incorporate wind energy as well, using a fuel cell to convert the hydrogen back to electricity to power local ferries whilst berthed at the harbour. This project will also develop a training programme with a view for green hydrogen to eventually be used as fuel on the ships themselves. 

Surf ‘n’ Turf is paving the way for other innovative hydrogen projects. For example, BIG HIT, which will use renewably generated hydrogen to power a fleet of electric vans and two hydrogen-powered boilers in Orkney.

By piloting the generation of hydrogen from renewable energy sources, these ground-breaking new projects will help avoid grid limitations, supply local demands and support further development of marine energy projects in Orkney.

Grid Limitations

Stuart Brown, CEO of 2015’s winner of the Marine Energy Innovation of the Year Award, FloWave, explains why he nominated EMEC for the awards: “Orkney has an abundance of renewable energy resources and is regularly able to generate more clean electricity than it needs. Unfortunately, the current electrical distribution grid is already quite constrained, and this includes the cable connection to the mainland that allows the export of this clean low carbon power to the rest of the UK.

 “A very real consequence of this grid constraint is the restriction to growth of new wind, tidal and wave energy projects in and around the islands. In true Orcadian style the team at EMEC have been both resolute and innovative in their determination to overcome this challenge, and their community-centred approach should be a lesson to all of us.

 “In particular, I’ve been incredibly impressed with the development of their pioneering hydrogen project which will pave the way for future energy systems, but more than that proves what can be achieved despite challenging grid constraints. Perhaps most importantly, the project, and those that follow, set out a suite of proven solutions that will have world-wide application in a variety of local scenarios.

“EMEC deserves to be acknowledged not only for their pioneering approach and technical solution, but also in making such a project work with, and for, the benefit of local companies and their community. As the project progresses the benefits will be many and widespread, and EMEC’s drive and innovative approach to making marine renewables succeed no matter what the challenge makes them very worthy of the Business Green Marine Technology of the Year Award”.

EMEC’s Managing Director, Neil Kermode added that the addition of the hydrogen project is the latest example of EMEC's drive to remove limits from what the clients can achieve. Diverting tidal and wind energy into hydrogen opens up a way around the inadequacies in the grid, it also opens up new markets in the supply of chemicals, liquid fuels, energy storage and transportation on land and sea.

The winner of the award will be announced at an awards ceremony on 2 December in London.