Round 3 Windfarm Metocean Data Delivery
UK-based Cefas has signed a major contract with East Anglia Offshore Wind Ltd (EAOW) to provide metocean data that will support the development of the East Anglia Zone in the North Sea. The three-year project will involve the deployment, operation and servicing of directional waverider buoys and seabed 'mini-landers' at a number of sites across the East Anglia Zone.
Directional Waverider buoys measure wave height, period and direction, while mini-landers acquire current profile, wave, water depth and suspended sediment data. The combined datasets will thus provide an in-depth oceanographic assessment of the development zone.
The wave data collected during this project – which will be relayed back to Cefas in near real time – will also contribute to a national network of wave monitoring stations. This data is then publicly accessible through the WaveNet website.
During 2010/11, Cefas deployed a number of waverider buoys and acoustic wave and current profilers (using mini-landers) to make wave, tide and current measurements in the proposed East Anglia ONE Windfarm area.
EAOW is a joint venture owned 50:50 by ScottishPower Renewables and Vattenfall, and has been created for the development of the East Anglia Zone. It is estimated that the 7.2GW zone has the potential to meet the equivalent electricity needs of 4.6 million homes.
