- The Blue Economy CRC is confident that integrating ocean industries to produce renewable energy alongside sustainable and nutritious food will be the blueprint of the future.
- Partnering with Carnegie Clean Energy on their MoorPower™ technology, the Blue Economy CRC is funding research that brings together Australian wave energy pioneers with industry partners including leading Australian aquaculture companies Huon and Tassal.
- In a first for Australia, Carnegie Clean Energy MoorPower™ technology has been successfully deployed and commenced operations at an offshore test site in North Fremantle, WA.
- MoorPower™ promises to deliver onboard electricity generation that can reduce current reliance on diesel generators in offshore operations, cutting carbon emissions, minimising risk and reducing energy costs.
- With a long-term goal of ensuring wave energy in Australia is investable and can be adopted by offshore aquaculture to support their decarbonisation pathway, the MoorPower™ Demonstrator deployment will validate the technology and build end user and community support in advance of commercial development.
Offshore industries rely heavily on diesel generated energy. As industries look to replace diesel and commit to net zero pathways, the opportunity to access novel oceanic renewable energy sources like wave energy is paramount.
Following extensive industry collaboration and feedback on the requirements, constraints and challenges of industry operating in offshore environments through the Blue Economy CRC research program, MoorPower™ is being developed to provide clean, reliable, predictable energy, reducing the requirement for fossil fuels. In turn, MoorPower™ will reduce carbon emissions, reduce risk, drive down costs and support the growth of a diverse sustainable blue economy through the transition from diesel to renewable energy.
Carnegie Clean Energy’s wave-powered barge concept, ‘MoorPower™’ has been successfully deployed and is now operational in an offshore waters test site in North Fremantle, WA. The deployment follows on from extensive onshore testing and commissioning completed at Carnegie’s onshore facility, focusing on reliability, communications and control strategies.
“The deployment of our MoorPower™ technology is a significant milestone in the challenge of decarbonising offshore operations, it is an important step in bringing our technology to the world,” Carnegie CEO Jonathan Fievez.
“What we are learning from this demonstration deployment at our testing grounds off Fremantle will be critical to rolling this technology out to aquaculture and other marine industries.” Says Mr Fievez.
The Blue Economy CRC project brings together a consortium of leading industry and academic partners with a collective dedication to delivering a project that showcases the capabilities of MoorPower™ while also prioritising safety and reliability, key for offshore industries.
“The successful deployment of Carnegie’s MoorPower Demonstrator is testament to the impact the Blue Economy CRC has in bringing together key technology developers such as Carnegie Clean Energy and Advanced Composite Structures Australia, with leading universities and innovative aquaculture companies.” says Blue Economy CEO, Dr John Whittington.
“This technology advances Australia’s ocean energy capabilities and provides real-world solutions for decarbonisation and a tangible pathway to net-zero.”
The project will yield vital insights into the behaviour of the MoorPower™ system across various sea conditions which will play a crucial role in validating the modelling of the MoorPower™ technology for future commercial projects.
By validating MoorPower™ in real-world conditions and showing how wave energy can support offshore aquaculture, this project marks a significant step towards sustainable and cleaner energy solutions for offshore industries.
The partners contributing to this project are Carnegie Clean Energy, Advanced Composite Structures Australia, AOEG, DNV Australia, Huon Aquaculture, Tassal Group, The University of Queensland and University of Tasmania.
