Espoo, Finland, 2014-02-24 10:00 CET (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PRESS RELEASE 24 February 2014
Fortum has signed a leasing agreement with the UK-based Wave Hub in order to test wave power solutions off the coast of Cornwall. The agreement provides Fortum with a new opportunity to rapidly deploy advanced, full-scale wave power converters in ocean conditions.
Fortum believes that a transition to a Solar Economy, where energy production is based solely on renewable energy sources, is inevitable, although gradual. As an inexhaustible and emissions-free energy form, wave power can play an important role in the future, and that is why it is also a key focus area in Fortum's research and development work.
The Wave Hub facility offers Fortum a unique opportunity to test wave power converters in favourable ocean conditions. The site is consented, constructed and grid connected, which significantly reduces the time it takes to get devices into the water. The berth that Wave Hub will provide is capable of handling up to 10 megawatts (MW) installed generation.
“This is as much ‘plug and play’ as it gets when it comes to wave power generation development. The site already has everything we need to start testing,” says Fortum's Chief Technology Officer Heli Antila , PhD. “From the very beginning, Wave Hub has been very supportive of our project development, which is important as this is a testing environment,” Antila continues.
“One wave power solution that we are currently evaluating to be deployed at the site is the ‘Penguin’, developed by Finnish wave power company Wello,” says Heli Antila. “This technique comprises vessels that float on the water and capture kinetic energy, which is then turned into electrical power, with minimal anchoring attached to the bottom,” she concludes.
Fortum Corporation Corporate Communications
Further information:
Heli Antila, CTO, Fortum Corporation, +358 40 571 7188 Claire Gibson, Managing Director, Wave Hub Limited, + 44 (0) 1736 800290
Information to editors on Fortum's wave power development: Fortum has been actively involved in wave energy development since 2007 and has participated in the development of several technologies. One of these is the Finnish AW-Energy’s WaveRoller™ technology, which has been successfully tested off the coast of Portugal. Last year, Fortum also signed a cooperation agreement with the French marine technology company DCNS to further test and develop AW-Energy’s technology off the coast of Bretagne, France.
In Sweden, Fortum and Seabased AB are currently cooperating around a 10-megawatt wave power park on the west coast of Sweden, in Sotenäs. It is one of the world’s largest wave-power demonstration projects and will start production during 2014. The technology of choice in Sweden is Seabased's linear wave power generator that is placed on the bottom of the sea.
The new agreement with Wave Hub is another step in Fortum’s aim to test new and promising wave power technologies in order to develop new renewable energy for the next generation.
About Fortum Fortum’s purpose is to create energy that improves life for present and future generations. Catering to the versatile needs of our customers, we generate, distribute and sell electricity and heat, and offer related expert services. Our operations focus on the Nordic and Baltic countries, Russia and Poland. In 2013, Fortum’s sales totalled EUR 6.1 billion and comparable operating profit was EUR 1.6 billion. We employ approximately 9,900 people. Fortum’s shares are traded on the NASDAQ OMX Helsinki. www.fortum.com
About Wave Hub Wave Hub offers a grid-connected and consented area of sea with an excellent wave climate, backed up by world-class research, excellent port infrastructure and an established supply chain in South West England. There is no fixed period for working at Wave Hub but we expect that developers will move on to building larger, commercial scale projects in our region and elsewhere once their technologies have proved their reliability over a number of years. http://www.wavehub.co.uk/
