News Stories
Wave Hub managing contractor appointed
18 November 2008 15:05
One of the world's leading subsea engineering companies has been appointed to manage the design, procurement and construction of the Wave Hub renewable energy project off the coast of South West England.
The South West Regional Development Agency (RDA) has selected J P Kenny, part of international energy services company John Wood Group PLC, as its engineering and management contractor for the project.
The RDA is leading the development of Wave Hub, which will create the world's largest wave energy farm 10 miles off the north coast of Cornwall.
Wave Hub will be an electrical 'socket' on the seabed connected to the National Grid via a subsea cable. With a capacity of up to 20MW, it will allow the pre-commercial testing of wave energy devices on a scale not seen before.
Four wave device developers are working with the RDA on the project, and it is anticipated that up to 30 devices could be deployed. Consents have already been obtained from the UK Government for the Wave Hub site.
J P Kenny was selected following a competitive tender process. There were 11 expressions of interest and three companies were shortlisted.
Stephen Peacock, the South West RDA's Executive Director of Enterprise and Innovation, said: "This is a great step forward for Wave Hub and puts the project back on track for deployment in 2010. We want South West England to lead the world in the development of marine renewable energy and we're delighted to have a company of J P Kenny's calibre on board."
Thelma Sorensen, chairman of the Cornwall Business Partnership, welcomed the announcement: "This is excellent news and further evidence of the RDA's commitment to develop a world class renewable energy sector that will bring huge economic benefits to Cornwall and the wider region. The private sector fully supports this project and it will underpin significant higher education developments in renewables research."
J P Kenny has almost 30 years of subsea engineering and project management experience and an excellent track record for controlling costs and managing risk. They will manage all aspects of the design, procurement and installation of Wave Hub and the onshore works on the RDA's behalf, including the selection of sub-contractors.
Gerwyn Williams, group managing director of J P Kenny, said: "J P Kenny is committed to supporting the development of renewable energy and we are honoured to have been selected by the RDA as their engineering and project management consultant for this crucial project."
J P Kenny will spend the next few months working on the concept designs for Wave Hub, progressing to detailed designs by May of next year. Wave Hub is expected to be installed and operational by 2010.
An independent economic impact assessment, commissioned by the RDA, has shown that Wave Hub could create 1,800 jobs and £560 million in the UK economy over 25 years. Almost 1,000 of these jobs and £332 million could be generated in South West England.