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British companies are at the forefront of the development of wave and tidal energy technologies, according to a conference held in London this week. But the industry is worried that lack of practical support in the Government�s recent �Renewables Innovation Review� will allow the UK�s dominant position to slip away.
Six companies presented their full-scale wave and tidal stream generators at the Renewable Power Association�s WATTS 2004. Four of those are British. Claire Durkin who heads the DTI�s Energy Innovation and Business Unit also addressed the conference, describing the Renewables Innovation Review published last month.
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�Delegates were impressed with Government�s declared commitment to this sector,� said Philip Wolfe RPA�s Chief Executive, �but the detail of the Innovation Review just doesn�t back this up. Our member companies are pioneering a whole new industry with exciting developments every month. Meanwhile Government seems to think it can wait until the 2020�s before helping the market to emerge. That is the approach that lost us the wind power industry .�
The industry is pressing for market incentives for the implementation of marine energy projects in the UK, which enjoys some of the best wave and tide resource in the world. A separate meeting of RPA�s Ocean Energy Group yesterday considered a proposal to encourage these projects using an approach complementary with the Renewables Obligation, which aims to delivery 15% of the country�s electricity from renewables by 2015.
See full press release below.
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