Orkney’s European Marine Energy Centre (Emec) and the University of Edinburgh have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with organisations based in Qingdao to support the development of a marine energy test site in China.
The MoU will see the Scottish and Chinese teams share knowledge and carry out fundamental research to establish the wave energy test site in Qingdao.
Emec’s commercial director, Oliver Wragg said: “As the first test centre of its kind, Emec has endured some steep learning curves during its own development, and we see no point in other countries having to reinvent the wheel.
“Having overseen more than 1000 marine energy activities at our test sites in Orkney covering device deployments, grid connections, cable laying operations, data collection and various monitoring activities, we have many experiences to share with our Chinese counterparts that can make their journey a great deal smoother.
“And by working together, we can help open up markets across the world for wave and tidal energy technologies currently in development”.
Professor Hongda Shi from Ocean University of China (OUC) said: “Marine renewable energy in China has the potential for a brilliant future, but we have a long way to go.
“The short-cut for development is to cooperate with the countries who have advanced technology and abundant experience. Scotland is no doubt such a country, and Emec is the leader of the domain.
“Enterprise, together with university, can make both theoretical and applicable achievements. We hope that collaboration between both countries will make marine renewable energy a big market which benefits Scotland and China.”
Recommended for you
