Benefits of tapping into wave and tidal sector in the spotlight
Opportunities for oil and gas supply chain companies to diversify into the rapid‑ ly developing wave and tidal power market will be high‑ lighted at an event this week,
Economic development body Opportunity North East (ONE) and the Ocean Power Innovation Network (OPIN), supported by Scottish Enter‑ prise, have joined forces to stage the workshop in Aber‑ deen tomorrow.
The marine renewables sec‑ tor is already generating sig‑ nificant commercial oppor‑ tunities with an estimated £450 million spent across the UK wave and tidal sup‑ ply chain to date. The global industry is forecast to be worth up to £76 billion by 2050.
Trevor Garlick, chair of ONE’S oil & gas sector board, said: “The supply chain has developed over 40 years in the North Sea and has the knowl‑ edge, experience and products that can support the develop‑ ment of the wave and tidal power sector.
“There is an exciting oppor‑ tunity here, especially for our SMES, to engage with this emerging sector and to win new work through develop‑ ing relationships at an early stage.”
Scotland is already playing a key role in marine renewa‑ bles with initiatives including the European Marine Energy Centre in Orkney where devic‑ es are tested, and the world’s first large‑scale tidal stream array, Meygen, in the Pent‑ land Firth, which began gen‑ erating electricity in 2016.