A recent study completed by Apollo has reinforced Bombora’s research that mWave™ technology, when applied to a floating platform, can deliver utility scale energy solutions resulting in significant operational, economic, and environmental benefits.
Experts in the field of offshore engineering, Apollo, were appointed to support the development of the Floating mWave™, taking Bombora’s utility scale wave energy converter into deeper waters. The Apollo project forms part of a comprehensive strategic study to verify the case that mWave can play a vital role in adding value to large scale offshore energy projects.
Apollo’s marine and offshore engineering team advanced the design of the Floating mWave platform structure and provided supporting data for Bombora’s Cost of Energy (COE) analysis. Apollo have extensive experience in structural, mechanical and marine engineering, skills invaluable to progressing this new application of Bombora’s mWave onto floating offshore platforms.
Sam Leighton, Bombora’s Managing Director, welcomed Apollo’s involvement in the project:
“Accessing higher wave resource climates offshore is part of the strategic plan for our mWave product. We see a gap in the market where either co-location of both wind and wave platforms and the integration of wind and wave onto a shared platform can boost the output and cost efficiency of offshore power projects, supporting the advancement of this emerging global growth market. I’m delighted that Apollo have been working with our team to drive forward our plans to optimise mWave’s floating offshore performance and extend its application into this new market.”
Asked about their involvement in this cutting-edge development work, Nigel Robinson, Apollo’s Marine and Offshore Director commented:
“Apollo bring extensive experience of engineering solutions for the challenging offshore environments targeted by wave energy converters. The team have been delighted to support Bombora again, and to help their mWave technology towards its full potential”.
In parallel to the study conducted by Apollo, Bombora has continued to progress its project with the Offshore Renewable Energy Cataput’s Marine Energy Engineering Centre of Excellence (MEECE). This project is utilising the full techno-commercial capabilities of MEECE to optimise the performance and cost of Bombora’s mWave™ technology in an offshore environment.
A very significant commercial opportunity exists in the rapidly expanding floating offshore wind market. The hard-won success of fixed offshore wind technology – coupled with the long-term experience of the offshore oil and gas industry – is catapulting floating wind along the commercial development pathway. It is projected that more than 17.5GW of floating offshore wind will be installed worldwide by 2033*, a number that is expected to grow exponentially. Only this week, the UK announced that they were introducing a new target of 1GW of Floating Wind by 2030 in their pledge to ‘build back greener’. This high growth market requires innovation to quickly reduce the levelised cost of energy, presenting Bombora with a significant opportunity. mWave technology offers a complimentary solution to wind by maximising seabed lease utilisation and power generation whilst improving consistency of power output and improving infrastructure cost utilisation.
As the world continues its march towards decarbonisation, Bombora’s product is expected to form part of the renewable energy ecosystem. The Floating mWave platform is a key development in achieving this.
* Market Intelligence: Quest Global Floating Wind Energy Market & Forecast