Filling the gap: a UK-based assessment of the Perth Wave Energy Project

The Scottish and UK governments have set ambitious targets on renewable energy, with 50% of electricity to be generated by renewable sources in Scotland by 2015, and 15% of the UK's total energy consumption to be from renewable sources by 2020. The UK has one of the richest wave energy resources in the world, and technologies are rapidly moving towards commercial-scale developments in order to harness this power. Substantial industry investment is needed to sustain the pace of development, but in the current financial climate investors have become more averse to risk and/or uncertainty.

In Australia, however, the Carnegie Perth Wave Energy Project (PWEP) will be the world's first grid and water infrastructure connected wave energy array, made up of three Carnegie Wave Energy Ltd. CETO devices. This level of development has not been achieved in the UK, despite our position as 'market leader'. This represents a significant international knowledge exchange opportunity from scientific, industrial, and regulatory perspectives.

Proposed wave energy projects must carry out a detailed environmental impact assessment (EIA) before any development phase can begin. The EIA is often based on information from a baseline survey, fed into models and used to predict any potential environmental impacts which must be mitigated and/or monitored throughout the life of the wave energy project. Complying with EIA regulations can be an unpredictable, costly and resource intensive process for developers in the UK, and one which can affect outside investment into a project.

Are Australian regulations less rigorous, or are the processes followed less cumbersome and more streamlined? Or are Australian companies more effective at achieving environmental consent? By assessing how the PWEP would fare against UK regulations, this internship will begin to answer these questions. Furthermore, gaps or areas of academic uncertainty within PWEP-type projects which could hold up the EIA and consenting process will be identified. By developing specific, well-thought-out, quantitative studies around the identified gaps, this internship will go some way towards reducing scientific uncertainty around wave energy projects.

This will go some way towards reducing the unpredictable nature of the EIA and consenting process for wave energy developments, making the UK more attractive to internal and international investors, building capacity within the UK industry to achieve the stated government renewable energy targets.