Projects

Three innovative companies are being funded by the West of Orkney Windfarm through the first call of EMEC’s Offshore Wind R&I Programme. Details of the projects being funded can be found below. 

TRIOS Renewables is developing a solution to embed spatial metocean intelligence into offshore wind operational expenditure (OpEx) models, narrowing the gap between the oceanography world and the OpEx world. The software will help de-risk and improve bankable financial performance of projects prior to a final investment decision (FID).

David McMillan, Director and Co-Founder at TRIOS Renewables Ltd said:

“We’ve been struck by the single-mindedness and drive of everyone at West of Orkney and their willingness to embrace innovation as an important tool to get their project to Final Investment Decision. It’s refreshing to see a developer directly drawing out the best innovation ideas and then funding them – I think this is a model which should be used more widely in the offshore wind industry. For Trios, as an innovative Scottish based SME in offshore wind, this represents a great opportunity and we intend to make the most of it.”

Seaview Sensing aims to improve wave measurement accuracy in high seas and provide wind mapping to ensure 24/7 surface current, wave and wind data using a high-frequency radar system. The data can be used to provide real-time metocean information and, with models, improve forecasting and identify weather windows, thus reducing the risk presented by marine weather to people, cargo and vessels.

Lucy Wyatt, Technical Director at Seaview Sensing said:

“We are very excited to be part of this R&I initiative which will significantly accelerate our research programme and generate more robust metocean data. For us it is an important opportunity to interact directly with the offshore wind sector and get guidance on how they use data and how we can best tailor our offer for this market. We look forward to working with EMEC and the West of Orkney Windfarm and hope to persuade them to obtain a high frequency radar system to support development and operation of this wind farm. This linkage with an offshore wind project will be particularly valuable in our export markets.”

Next Ocean has developed a novel Wave Predictor tool which predicts waves and ship motions in real time for the upcoming few minutes. This decision support tool provides predictions at a level of detail of individual waves and motion crests, allowing the crew to pick calmer moments to execute the most critical phase of offshore operations.

Dr. Peter Naaijen, CTO at Next Ocean said:

“We are very pleased with the opportunity offered by the Offshore Wind R&I Programme to demonstrate and further optimise our technology for the challenging environment and applications at West of Orkney Windfarm. Harsh wave conditions are right up our alley and we’re looking forward to increasing operational weather windows for the windfarm’s transport, installation, operations and maintenance, and at the same time making the vessel crews’ lives easier and safer.”