Cornwall Sets Out MRE-Tech Commercialisation Plan

On Friday, 22 May, the Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership (C&IoS LEP), Cornwall Council and the Council of the Isles of Scilly jointly launched their Marine Renewable Energy (MRE) Roadmap, which sets out how the public and private sector can work together to deliver the next steps towards the commercialisation of offshore and marine energy generation solutions and supporting technologies over the next 10 years.

The Roadmap clearly outlines Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly’s ambitions to achieve commercialisation by 2025, through investing in three key development themes: 1) Research, Development and Innovation (RD&I) – supporting industry led R&D with local Universities and HE Colleges; 2) Demonstration and pre-commercialisation – encourage pre commercial array scale and ‘seed’ the development of ‘commercial scale’ projects (including investment in enabling infrastructure); 3) Commercialisation and market development – identifying suitable funding mechanisms to de-risk private sector investment.

The Roadmap also outlines a commitment to growing Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly’s Green and Marine Sector by supporting the creation of a minimum of 100 new businesses and 700 high-value jobs.

The region will further contribute to an increase in renewable energy production, which will support the UK in meeting and exceeding the national 15% generation target.

To support these three key stages of development, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly LEP will also be facilitating investment in sector development and skills development over the coming years.

The region will also increase engagement with key marine related organisations and work with the sector to shape EU funding. MRE development in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly is a long term investment and the Roadmap sets out the need to build on the existing £100 million invested.

Underlying this ambition for growth the EU Structural and Investment Fund (EUSIF) seeks to consolidate the previous investments made to support this sector with the potential for a further £30 – £40m worth of investment funding.

The roadmap acknowledges the importance of working closely with Regional and Celtic partners in Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland to address common challenges and maximise opportunities. In 2014 The Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult’s (OREC) announced the need for £200 million investment to drive the UK wave industry along a path to commercial readiness.

To date, Scotland has announced £16 million in funding towards MRE and Wales has announced commitment of £80 million investment.

The roadmap has been signed by representatives from the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly LEP, Cornwall Council, Council of the Isles of Scilly, Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult and South West Marine Energy Park (SWMEP).

Image: Wello (Illustration)