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Forming a clear, consistent and coordinated policy framework is a vital step in helping to accelerate the commercialisation and long-term viability of the UK ocean energy sector. For prospective policy-makers, attempting to do so can raise many questions:
This series of five reports, produced as a result of collaboration between Supergen ORE and the Policy and Innovation Group at the University of Edinburgh, referred to collectively as the Ocean Energy Policymakers Toolkit, aims to provide answers to these questions. Through a combination of future evidence-based scenarios, quantitative analysis of existing data, collaboration with industry and government policymakers and future scenario analysis, this report series will outline how ocean energy, specifically the wave and tidal stream sector, can grow to become an indispensable feature of our future UK energy mix. The following five reports, which underline the ocean energy sectors ability to meaningfully respond to a number of relevant and pressing challenges, are arranged below in the order that we suggest they be read. Each report can be downloaded by clicking on the report cover or a more detailed summary can be found by clicking the link provided at the end of each section. |
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Delivering Net Zero: Forecasting Wave and Tidal Stream Deployment in UK Waters by 2050
The UK government has an ambitious and legally mandated commitment to achieve Net Zero by 2050 and therefore must rapidly reduce its reliance on fossil fuels and invest in alternative sources of energy that are affordable, sustainable and reliable. The first report in this series forecasts the contribution that wave and tidal stream energy devices can make to a future UK national energy system. This report predicts that achieving realistic cost reduction targets of €150/MWh for wave energy and €100/MWh for tidal stream by 2030 will result in the significant successful commercial deployment of wave and tidal stream devices by the mid-2030s. Provided that these cost reductions are supported by long-term financial support and sustained innovation programmes, our energy mix is predicted to have deployed at least 6GW of wave energy and at least 6GW of tidal stream energy by 2050, contributing over 12GW of ocean energy towards the Net Zero transition. More details on Delivering Net Zero: Forecasting Wave and Tidal Stream Deployment in UK Waters by 2050 |
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What is the value of innovative offshore renewable energy deployment to the UK economy?
Over the next 20 years, the transition to a Net Zero energy system will involve wholesale changes to the national economy as renewable energy technologies displace conventional fossil fuel energy sources. This energy transition represents a generational opportunity to ensure that the associated costs do not unfairly impact or burden specific communities or individuals. The success of the Just Transition will rely heavily on the commercial performance, domestic supply chain strength and export value of the renewable technologies that emerge to underpin the emerging Net Zero energy system. The second report in this series focuses on the GVA, a widely accepted economic performance metric employed by governments and policymakers, that could potentially be generated through the deployment of wave and tidal stream energy devices. The report forecasts, that dependant on domestic supply chain strength, the deployment of 6GW of wave and 6GW of tidal stream devices in UK waters could generate between £4.9bn–£8.9bn in GVA, with UK exports supporting international deployments generating an additional £6.4bn–£32.1bn, by 2050. This report has also quantified the economic implications of increased and targeted innovation across the supply chain. More details on What is the value of innovative offshore renewable energy deployment to the UK economy? |
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What are the UK power system benefits from deployments of wave and tidal stream generation?
With future energy mixes predicted to contain high levels of intermittent renewable energy sources, the system benefits offered by wave and tidal stream will become increasingly important. Utilising the highly predictable output of wave and tidal energy sources to underpin the intermittent generation profiles of wind and solar is a vital step in ensuring a balanced and resilient future energy system. The third report in this series has outlined and quantified the potential power system benefits that the UK stands to gain through the deployment of wave and tidal stream energy technologies in domestic waters. By focussing on the forecasted 2050 net-zero compliant national energy system outlined in previous reports, the energy system benefits associated with the deployment of 6GW of wave and 6GW of tidal stream can be quantified over a range of metrics: an increased renewable dispatch; decreased peaking generation and fossil fuel dispatch; and decreased storage requirements. Most importantly, the inclusion of ocean energy devices in the national energy mix could produce in excess of £1bn worth of reductions in the total cost of energy dispatch per annum by 2050. More details on What are the UK power system benefits from deployments of wave and tidal stream generation? More details on What are the UK power system benefits from deployments of wave and tidal stream generation? |
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Ocean Energy and Net Zero: Policy Support for the Cost Effective Delivery of 12GW of Wave and Tidal Stream by 2050
In order for renewable energy technologies to replace existing carbon-intensive forms of energy production, there has been a need for bespoke and sustained policy support mechanisms that allow renewable energy technologies to access the high levels of public and private investment required to commercialise. For the wave and tidal sectors, this challenge is compounded by the fact that these technologies are also competing with mature and established renewable energy technologies such as wind and solar. The fourth report in this series focuses on the policy support mechanisms, and the associated costs, that would be required to accelerate the commercialisation of the wave and tidal stream energy sectors and ensure that they reach a stage of commercial viability both in terms of parity with wholesale market prices and technology readiness levels (TRLs). Establishing the optimal combination of policy support mechanisms to bring a technology to this stage of TRL is a delicate balancing act between technology push policies – designed to support innovation and accelerate cost reduction of technology development – and market pull policies – designed to accelerate the commercialisation and the deployment of technologies by providing long-term revenue support. While long-term financial support is important for increasing both investor confidence and future investment, this report outlines the overwhelming importance of sustained and coordinated innovation programmes in dramatically reducing the overall investment cost required to achieve a commercial wave and tidal stream energy sector. More details on Ocean Energy and Net Zero: Policy Support for the Cost Effective Delivery of 12GW of Wave and Tidal Stream by 2050 |
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Research and Innovation for Wave and Tidal Stream
in the UK and EU: A 2023 Summary With the importance of well-structured and effective innovation funding now well understood, it could seem daunting to attempt to select and target specific challenge areas across such a broad sector. Establishing a coherent and coordinated research and innovation strategy is critical to ensuring the optimal development of the UK wave and tidal stream sector. Our final report in this series outlines an up-to-date and detailed analysis of the research and innovation landscape for projects and funding relating to the UK wave and tidal stream sector. Aligning our own domestic funding with the challenge areas identified in the European-wide and industry-accepted Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda for Ocean Energy (SRIA) report ensures that collaborative progress can be tracked and evaluated. Monitoring the total financial commitment, the number of research topics and the scope and eventual impact of achieving associated research outcomes are all important metrics for both innovation funders and technology developers. This report provides an unparalleled gap analysis of the prioritised sector challenges compared with the current funded innovation topics, and is essential reading for both policy makers designing innovation programmes and technology developers structuring their own innovation strategies. More details on Research and Innovation for Wave and Tidal Stream in the UK and EU: A 2023 Summary |
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With the delivery of the Ocean Energy Policymakers Toolkit, there is now a clear vision that fully outlines the role that the ocean energy sector can play in responding to the challenges posed by the drive for Net Zero by 2050, the ongoing Just Transition, and the concerns regarding national energy security, reliability and affordability.
By forecasting a realistic, quantifiable and, most importantly, affordable pathway to the deployment of 6 GW of wave and 6 GW of tidal stream in UK waters by 2050, the Ocean Energy Policymakers Toolkit has established the importance of a commercial ocean energy sector, and the associated benefits that the UK can expect to enjoy. This report series also emphasises that, despite the immense progress made to date, the ocean energy sector will require sustained support to both encourage continued innovation and provide the market sector confidence required to secure long-term financial support. By providing neutral, evidence-based guidance, we hope that prospective policymakers will feel informed and encouraged to develop effective and sustained policies to support the ocean energy sector. With the ocean energy sector approaching a pivotal moment with regards to development and deployment, this series of reports will allow the formation of a well-structured and coherent policy frameworks and cross-government strategies, supporting the growth of the sector to deliver on its acknowledged and largely untapped potential. |