EIMR International conference now fully booked

May 1-3 2012, Kirkwall.

It’s very encouraging to announce that we have now closed the delegate list for this event having exceeded our 200 delegate limit. We have have opened a ‘standby’ list for anyone still wishing to attend should another delegate need to cancel – if you would like to be added to this list please contact contact@eimr.org

A draft programme is now available HERE (please remember this is still subject to change) and information for delegates is available HERE

See all details at the EIMR conference website.

News from EMEC

Consent for commercial wave power array

14/02/2012 – Scotland’s first near shore commercial wave power array, which will power more than 1,000 homes, has been approved by Energy Minister Fergus Ewing.

Two new Aquamarine Power Oyster wave energy converters will be added to an existing device at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC), Orkney, to allow operators, Aquamarine Power, to test the devices as an array. Each of the machines has a capacity of 800 Kilowatts, bringing the total capacity of the array to 2.4MW.

Although the machines are demonstrators, the array will be the first near shore wave array in Scotland to be connected to the National Grid, and are expected to supply enough electricity to power more than 1,000 homes.

FULL ARTICLE AT SOCTGOV

MaRINET offers funding for wave and tidal testing at EMEC

16 February 2012 – The marine research organisation MaRINET opens funding call for non UK-based wave and tidal energy power companies, SMEs and research groups for use at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in Orkney, UK. The MaRINET wave and tidal testing funding scheme runs until March 2015, and further calls for access will be made during that time.

Matthew Finn, research and project coordinator at EMEC, says: “The funding scheme operated by MaRINET offers technology developers an opportunity to deploy their devices at facilities where they may not otherwise be able to secure test time. EMEC is a partner in the MaRINET initiative, a marine renewable energy infrastructure network funded by the European Commission (EC).

LINK TO MARINET

EIMR international conference 2012 – Orkney

May 1-3 2012, Kirkwall.

Next year, UHI will host a ground-breaking, international science conference in Orkney, together with Heriot-Watt University’s Centre for Island Technology (ICIT) and the University of Aberdeen.

The International Conference on the Environmental Interactions of Marine Renewable Energy Technologies (EIMR) 2012, will bring together leading international specialists with the aim to review leading research from around the world and come to an understanding on whether and how emerging technologies might affect coastlines and the seabed, as well as marine animals and seabirds and the human communities living in the areas where development is expected to take place. The core conference programme will take place May 1–3, 2012, but it is expected that, with planned field trips and fringe meetings, the delegates will be in Orkney for around a week.

Organisers are requesting abstracts, which should consist of a one-paragraph summary (ca. 100 words), a list of 3-5 key words, the contact details of all the authors, and a correspondence address. This should be submitted by email to the conference organiser for consideration by the Scientific Steering Committee at contact@eimr.org The closing date for submissions is 30 November 2011. It is intended that the programme will be finalised by the end of January 2012. Informal enquiries about the conference may also be sent to the same address.

The relevant subjects include:

Energy Resources, for example wave, tidal, and meteorological measurements.

Physical and Biophysical Modelling.

Environmental Interactions – for example observations of devices in relation to currents, sediments, benthic and pelagic species, migratory birds and marine mammals.

Studies into disturbance and contamination in ecosystems.

Ecological methodologies and study design.

Marine Acoustics.

Engineering and Technical Challenges – for example concerning moorings, seabed survey, navigation and positioning.

The sustainability of the marine renewables industry, and shaping of national and international policy and regulation.

Socio-economic investigations: for example, regarding community, stakeholder, heritage, archaeological and cultural considerations.

Confirmation of the detailed programme will be available at the end of Jan 2012. Informal enquiries about the conference should be directed to contact@eimr.org

See all details at the EIMR conference website.

EMEC testing facility – modelling tidal flows

EMEC’s primary role is to provide operational testing facilities for both wave and tidal devices. The research vision is to become an indispensable partner within a network of high quality, internationally recognised research stakeholders. At a local level, EMEC aims to make best use of its test facilities by coordinating a joint approach to industry-related research needs, and is fully supported by the Scottish Government.

For most developers coming to deploy at EMEC, installation at these facilities will be the first time their device has been in the open sea and grid connected. The tidal test site at the Fall of Warness, to the west of the island of Eday, was chosen for its high velocity marine currents which reach almost 4m/sec (7.8 knots) at spring tides.

Wave and Tidal potential mapping data here

Tidal flow and wave modelling data from EMEC