Seabased

Last updated

Seabased is a developer of wave power technology, originally based in Sweden and now headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.

Contents

Multiple devices have been tested in Sweden and Norway, and a wave farm is being constructed in Ghana, although this project has experienced delays. The company has announced ambitious plans for many projects, although few of these have yet come to fruition.

Seabased is working with the United Nations on developing a regulatory framework for deploying wave energy in Small Island Developing States, including Bermuda, to help them transition away from fossil fuel power. [1]

Device Concept

The device concept has a buoy floating on the surface, which is tethered via a steel cable to a seabed-mounted device containing a three-phase direct-drive (i.e without gearbox) linear generator. It is classified as an offshore point-absorber type wave energy converter (WEC), and it works primarily in heave (up-and-down motion). [2] Key properties of the deployed WECs and their generators are given below, with rated power at a stroke speed of 0.7 metres per second (2.3 ft/s). [2]

Main characteristics of deployed generators [2]
Deployed atGeneratorTranslator massMagnet typeHull heightRated power
Islandsberg & Runde3-phase 4-pole1.2 tonnesNd2Fe14B8.65 metres (28.4 ft)10 kW
Sotenäs & Ada Foah3-phase 9-pole9.8 tonnesFerite6.0 metres (19.7 ft)30 kW

History

The WEC concept was originally developed at Uppsala University, it was originally commercialised by the Swedish spin-out company Seabased Industry AB (SIAB). [2] Seabased demonstrated the technology at several locations between 2006 and 2016. [3]

Early tests were conducted at the Islandsberg Test Site at Lysekil on the west coast of Sweden, about 100 kilometres (62 mi) north of Gothenburg. The water depth at the site is about 25 metres (82 ft), located at . [4] A total of 12 WECs were tested between March 2006 and August 2009. [3]

Runde, Norway

In September 2009, two Seabased WECs and an underwater substation were installed off the coast of Runde, Norway, at the MAREN test site of the Runde Environmental Centre. The project was in partnership with Vattenfall, and was connected to the local 22 kV electricity grid. The devices were located about 400 metres (1,300 ft) to the west of the island of Runde, in water depths of 45 to 90 metres (148 to 295 ft) at . There were technical problems with the devices, and they were removed in 2013. [2] [3] [5]

Sotenäs, Sweden

An array of 36 Seabased WECs totalling 1 MW and a subsea substation was installed off the coast of Kungshamn, Sotenäs in June 2014, at about 50 m water depth. [2] [6] The devices were connected to the Swedish electricity grid in 2015, via a 10 kilometres (6 mi) subsea cable. [7] The project was started in November 2011 and there were plans to deploy a further 9 MW at the site, [6] however the project ended by 2018 as funding ran out. The generators are still in-situ as an artificial reef. [8]

Ada Foah Energy Project, Ghana

Seabased and TC's Energy are developing a wave farm in the Gulf of Guinea, about 17 kilometres (11 mi) off the coast of Ada Foah in Ghana. [9] In 2014, a power purchase agreement was signed to provide 1,000 MW of electricity to the Electricity Company of Ghana. [10]

The first phase of the project was in installed in 2015 with the onshore switchgear connecting the first phase of wave energy converters to the local grid. [9]

In March 2018, a power purchase agreement was signed with TC's Energy for a 100 MW project. [11] However, the project stalled.

In 2020, plans were announced to revive the project, with finance from Power China covering 85% of the project cost, the remaining 15% bourne by TC's Energy Ghana. [9]

Future plans

Various announcements have been made by Seabased to develop wave farms (or wave parks) in various locations around the world. In 2018, CEO Oivind Magnussen acknowledged in an interview with Forbes that this could be "difficult". [12]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wave power</span> Transport of energy by wind waves, and the capture of that energy to do useful work

Wave power is the capture of energy of wind waves to do useful work – for example, electricity generation, water desalination, or pumping water. A machine that exploits wave power is a wave energy converter (WEC).

Wave Dragon is a concept wave energy converter of the overtopping type, developed by the Danish company Wave Dragon Aps. Incoming waves flow up a ramp into a reservoir, the water the drains back to sea level though a hydro-electric turbine, generating electricity. "Reflector arms" are used to focus incoming waves, to channel the waves towards the ramp, increasing the energy captured.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pelamis Wave Energy Converter</span>

The Pelamis Wave Energy Converter was a technology that used the motion of ocean surface waves to create electricity. The machine was made up of connected sections which flex and bend as waves pass; it is this motion which is used to generate electricity.

The Wave Hub is an offshore renewable energy research project, originally developed for wave power, but following limited interest is being developed for floating offshore wind. The project is developed approximately 10 miles (16 km) off Hayle, on the north coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European Marine Energy Centre</span>

The European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) Ltd. is a UKAS accredited test and research centre focused on wave and tidal power development, based in the Orkney Islands, UK. The centre provides developers with the opportunity to test full-scale grid-connected prototype devices in wave and tidal conditions.

Pelamis Wave Power designed and manufactured the Pelamis Wave Energy Converter – a technology that uses the motion of ocean surface waves to create electricity. The company was established in 1998 and had offices and fabrication facilities in Leith Docks, Edinburgh, Scotland. It went into administration in November 2014.

The Lysekil project is an ongoing wave power project which is run by the Centre for Renewable Electric Energy Conversion at Uppsala University in Sweden. It is located to the south of Lysekil, Västra Götaland County, on the west coast approximately 100 km (62 mi) north of Gothenburg. As of February 2024 there were 11 wave energy converters (WECs) located on the site, with a total capacity of 260 kW.

Waves4Power is a Swedish-based developer of buoy-based Offshore Wave Energy Converter (OWEC) systems. Ongoing research and development is done in collaboration with Chalmers University of Technology. A partnership with Dutch engineering specialist BnD-Engineering in 2021 aimed to commercialize and deploy the system on a global scale.

Wave Energy Scotland (WES) is a technology development body set up by the Scottish Government to facilitate the development of wave energy in Scotland. It was set up in 2015 and is a subsidiary of Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) based in Inverness.

Sotenäs is a wave farm located in Kungshamn, in the municipality of Sotenäs, Sweden. The facility consists of 36 wave energy converters (WECs), with a total installed capacity of nearly 1 MW. Each WEC generates power using point absorber buoys connected to linear generators on the seabed. The generators are located at a depth of 50 m (160 ft). According to Seabased, the technology used in the project could deliver electricity for under 10 cents per kWh. Initial announcements stated that the power plant would eventually expand to around 10 MW capacity, but in 2017 Seabased announced it would no longer expand the plant beyond the 36 WECs already in place. The Sotenäs wave park was not in operation between 2016-2020, with no buoys connected to the gravity-based PTOs. The site remains inactive, and is studied as an example of an artificial reef.

The Ada Foah Wave Farm is Africa's first wave farm commissioned in Ada Foah, Ghana. The 400 KW wave farm pilot project was developed by Swedish company Seabased. On 20 March 2018, Seabased signed a contract with Ghanaian renewable energy developer TC's Energy to expand the project to 100 MW.

Mocean EnergyLtd. is a wave energy technology developer, based in Edinburgh and Aberdeen. They are developing a hinged-raft attenuator wave energy converter (WEC) at various scales for different markets.

Minesto AB is a Swedish developer of electricity producing tidal kite turbines, based in Gothenburg. They also have a manufacturing base in Holyhead, North Wales, and a test facility at Portaferry, Northern Ireland.

CorPower Ocean AB is a wave energy device developer, headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. They also have offices in Oslo, Viana do Castelo, and Stromness. The office in Viana do Castelo is an R&D centre that also serves as the manufacturing and service centre for the wave energy converters (WEC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aguçadoura test site</span> Portuguese offshore renewable energy test site

The Aguçadoura test site is an offshore location in the north of Portugal where grid connected offshore renewable energy devices have been tested, for research and project demonstration. It is about 5 km (3 miles) off the coast of Aguçadoura, Póvoa de Varzim, about 35 km NNE of central Porto.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wello Penguin</span> Wave power device

The Penguin is a wave energy converter (WEC) which was developed by Finnish company Wello Oy between 2008 and 2023. Two full-scale device were constructed, and tested in Scotland and Spain respectively, although both tests ended in difficulties.

WaveRoller is a wave energy converter (WEC) developed by Finish company AW-Energy Oy since 2002, although the initial concept was developed between 1993 and 1999.

WavePiston is a concept to harness wave power using a long string with collector plates that move with the waves. Hydraulic pumps between the plates pump water onshore, where it can either drive a turbine to create electricity or be used in desalination.

References

  1. ↑ Johnston-Barnes, Owain (15 March 2024). "Roban discusses wave power at Lisbon conference". www.royalgazette.com. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Chatzigiannakou, Maria; Dolguntseva, Irina; Leijon, Mats (25 March 2017). "Offshore Deployments of Wave Energy Converters by Seabased Industry AB". Journal of Marine Science and Engineering. 5 (2): 15. doi: 10.3390/jmse5020015 . ISSN   2077-1312.
  3. 1 2 3 "Past Projects". SEABASED. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  4. ↑ Leijon, Mats; Boström, Cecilia; Danielsson, Oskar; Gustafsson, Stefan; Haikonen, Kalle; Langhamer, Olivia; Strömstedt, Erland; Stålberg, Magnus; Sundberg, Jan; Svensson, Olle; Tyrberg, Simon; Waters, Rafael (May 2008). "Wave Energy from the North Sea: Experiences from the Lysekil Research Site". Surveys in Geophysics. 29 (3): 221–240. doi: 10.1007/s10712-008-9047-x . ISSN   0169-3298.
  5. ↑ Andersen, Kristin; Chapman, A; Hareide, N; Folkestad, A; Sparrevik, E; Langhamer, O (7 September 2009). Environmental Monitoring at the Maren Wave Power Test Site off the Island of Runde, Western Norway: Planning and Design. 8th European Wave and Tidal Energy Conference (EWTEC 2009). Uppsala, Sweden. Retrieved 9 September 2024– via Tethys.
  6. 1 2 OES (29 September 2015). Annual Report 2014 (Report). The Executive Committee of Ocean Energy Systems. p. 109.
  7. 1 2 OES (6 May 2016). Annual Report 2015 (Report). The Executive Committee of Ocean Energy Systems. p. 114.
  8. ↑ "Sotenäs Project". Tethys. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
  9. 1 2 3 "Ada Foah Wave Energy Project: TC's Energy USA And Power China Ltd. Sign Financing Agreement". Modern Ghana. 26 July 2020. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  10. ↑ van den Berge, Rebecca (15 October 2014). "Construction of Ghanaian Wave Energy Project to Start". Offshore Wind. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
  11. ↑ Harris, Michael (21 March 2018). "Seabased signs deal to install 100 MW wave energy park in Ghana - HydroWorld". Hydro World. Archived from the original on 22 March 2018. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  12. ↑ Knowles, Kitty. "Seabased: World-Leading Wave Park Startup Crowdfunds $580,000 Ahead Of IPO". Forbes. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  13. ↑ Maksumic, Zerina (11 June 2024). "Barbados and Seabased join forces for wave power park". Offshore Energy. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  14. 1 2 Jones, Jonathan Spencer (31 May 2023). "Bermuda introduces 'sandbox' for new energy technologies". Power Engineering International. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  15. ↑ "Seabased wave energy technology to be installed in Canary Islands". Hydro Review. 10 May 2018. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.