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Report

Teaser, summary, work performed and final results

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - MARINERGI (Marine Renewable Energy Research Infrastructure)

Teaser

Summary

The world is transitioning to more sustainable energy sources and Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) can make a significant contribution to the renewable energy mix in Europe and globally. However, a long-term coordinated Research and Development (R&D) initiative is needed to develop the innovative technology required to harness the potential of wind, wave and tidal energy. A core requirement is an integrated strategic approach amongst testing facilities.

Developers require research infrastructures to supply the controlled conditions to test a technology/device and progress through the Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs). European test site installations are typically small to medium-sized and cannot offer a wide variety of services to test multiple technologies across the TRLs or specialised expertise in all the areas required. There is also a lack of common and standard practices. This results in developers undertaking isolated testing in several places, sometimes backed up by limited or short-term financing. The absence of continuous support and momentum is an obstacle to substantially advancing knowledge and efficiently advancing technologies. This approach also fails to take advantage of potential joint research and knowledge sharing between facilities that could improve testing methods and outcomes. In addition, the lack of strategic planning results in facilities scattered throughout the EU, which produces redundancies and/or gaps across the TRL map.

To date, the ORE R&D communityâ€™s approach has been to share efforts though joint actions such at ERA-NET and Framework programmes (FP7, H2020). For example, the MaRINET project successfully delivered a network of facilitites; joint research to improve the quality of testing outcomes; and a high demand access programme. However, these efforts have a limited impact given their transient nature. It is time now to evolve to a fully integrated and long-term approach.

MARINERG-i is an H2020 EU project (2017-2019) that aims to extend existing programmes and seek additional mechanisms to support a more effective and sustainable collaboration. The consortium is comprised of 14 partners and brings together all the European countries with significant testing capabilities in ORE (Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom). The primary objective is to define the MARINERG-i Research Infrastructure (RI) concept, designed to facilitate the future growth and development of the ORE sector. To achieve this, the project will produce a scientific and business plan for an integrated European RI. Results will be used to gain support for the realisation of this Pan-European RI and for an application to the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) 2020 roadmap. Success would provide access to funding to establish and prove the sustainability of the MARINERG-i RI.

Work performed

Work performed and key results achieved to date include:

Vision, mission and values statements - Preliminary versions have been completed and a summary statement is available on the MARINERG-i website at www.marinergi.eu.

Science plan â€“ A draft has been completed and is available on the website. It is expected that the common strategic research agenda will address the big science questions: Carbon free Energy; Climate Change; and Sustainable Development of our Seas and Oceans. These will be prioritised on the basis of ongoing EU coordination/roadmap initiatives. More specifically, it will address a number of fundamental and applied topics that will enhance test infrastructures capabilities in terms of testing ORE technologies.

Users and services - The project has undertaken extensive stakeholder engagement to profile potential users and their requirements. It is expected that MARINERG-i will provide the core services illustrated in Figure 1. A draft report on the outcomes is available on the website.

Legal structure â€“ Following analysis of the options, the consortium agreed that the most appropriate structure is a European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC). This is a legal entity recognised in all EU Member States. Its basic internal structure is very flexible, leaving the members to define in the statutes membership rights and obligations, the bodies of the ERIC and their competences. The final model for the legal framework will be available shortly on the website.

Financial and business plan â€“ The project is currently gathering key information on the existing capacities and the funding/financial models of relevant testing facilities. This will contribute to the long-term strategic business plan that must ensure the MARINERG-i RI is independently sustainable.

Design plan â€“ Results of project work to date have been compiled into a preliminary design plan that outlines the proposed structure. While the practicalities are still under discussion, it is currently expected that the distributed RI will comprise a central coordination hub, which is closely connected to a network of operational nodes located in other countries. Country nodes will act as hubs at national/regional level and coordinate local activities. The know-how and capacities of the whole organisation will support each node, while each site will develop specific competencies. In addition, each node is a gateway for access to the whole set of services provided by the distributed RI. The network will be perceived externally as a single body, producing the critical mass to become the reference at global level. The cohesive and collaborative identity will be facilitated by a common online presence.

Stakeholder engagement - In addition to defining the MARINERG-i RI concept, the project has undertaken stakeholder workshops within each partner country. The purpose is to disseminate information on the proposed RI, profile specifics of the various national ORE RI landscapes (players, facilities, institutional configuration) and confirm national support for the concept and the ESFRI 2020 application. Stakeholder workshops have been held in 11 of the 12 partner countries.

Final results

The MARINERG-i RI will be an independent legal entity of distributed testing infrastructures, united to create an integrated centre for delivering ORE. It will be a long-term, sustainable partnership between the highest quality testing facilitates, providing a coordinated set of services that meet current and future end-user requirements. By consolidating expertise, investment and access to infrastructures, the MARINERG-i RI will foster innovation across a variety of ORE technologies and stages of development. As the only integrated ORE platform of this scale worldwide, it will be the epicentre of this developing industry and ensure the EUâ€™s continuing leadership of this sector.

The MARINERG-i RI will provide added value across the whole chain and multiple groups of stakeholders as illustrated in Figure 2. Additionally, national and international collaboration is needed to create the critical mass necessary to develop the ORE industry; particularly in terms of a bespoke and Pan-European supply-chain. This is a key objective of the European (EU) ocean energy research agenda, as it would reinforce EU jobs and leadership in this sector. A core requirement is an integrated strategic approach amongst testing facilities.