Press release: EMEC to support development of South Korean marine energy centre

SCOTLAND’S world-leading wave and tidal energy development facility, the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC), today (Friday, August 17, 2012) announces its third partnership in the Far East, after agreeing a major international collaboration with South Korea.

EMEC has signed a memorandum of understanding with Incheon Metropolitan City (IMC), in north-western South Korea, to provide technical assistance on the design, construction and operation of a tidal energy testing facility in the province.

The partnership will see EMEC support the IMC region as it looks to harness the power of the harsh sea environment off its Western coast, through information sharing and knowledge gathering.

EMEC’s involvement in the South Korean project follows on from similar memoranda signed with the Ocean University China, the Japanese Marine Energy Centre, the Pacific Marine Energy Centre in Oregon, USA, and its strategic agreement with Fundy Ocean Research Centre for Energy, Canada.

Experts from EMEC are uniquely placed to advise their South Korean colleagues having successfully supported the deployment of more grid-connected devices at its full-scale wave and tidal testing facilities, than at any other single site in the world, from their base in Orkney, Scotland.

Established in 2003, EMEC is the only accredited wave and tidal test centre for marine renewable energy worldwide, providing unparalleled experience and knowledge of testing in real sea conditions.

Richard Morris, commercial director at EMEC, said:

“Establishing this link with Incheon Metropolitan City is a new and exciting opportunity for EMEC and shows that the experience which Scotland possesses is sought after and seen as key to the development of marine renewable industries in other countries.

“EMEC is honoured to be working in partnership with IMC, and we look forward to assisting the municipal administration as they work to develop a centre capable of supporting the development of marine renewable energy projects in South Korea.

“We are uniquely placed in terms of providing consultancy support to countries wishing to set up marine energy test sites and, in this case, our experience of device development testing in terms of performance, reliability and survivability in tough conditions is vital.

“South Korea has a superb resource, with some of the world’s most active tidal waters off its shores and the administration’s drive to harness that power is commendable. We look forward to working in collaboration with them.”

Moung Jo Cho, director general of economic hub promotion for Incheon Metropolitan City, said:

“Having the assistance of EMEC as we work toward the creation of our own offshore tidal test facility and the successful execution of Ocean Energy MECA projects is a meaningful step forward for IMC, and we are very pleased to announce this memorandum of understanding today.

“EMEC’s expertise will be of great assistance to the work being carried out in IMC to construct a test facility for tidal current energy devices in what are very tough waters, and their experience of testing and operations in harsh environments is of great interest to us.

“The mutual benefits to be gained from this relationship are clear in terms of the support we can provide to one another. International collaboration is very important to the success of the global renewable industry and we are proud to be working together.”

Scottish Government Cabinet Secretary for Finance, John Swinney, said:

“I welcome this announcement of cooperation between the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) and Incheon Metropolitan City in South Korea.

“We know that Scotland leads the world in marine energy, with a quarter of Europe’s wind and tidal energy and 10% of its wave power. But we also lead the world in renewable energy skills, with the pioneering work taking place at EMEC at the forefront of new technology. This partnership recognises that expertise.

“Earlier this year I travelled to South Korea and saw at first hand the huge opportunities for Scotland the country offers.

“This partnership is a great example of the two countries working together to our mutual advantage.”