Wave Hub device is successfully installed off the North Cornwall coast

The South West Regional Development Agency has entered the final stages of installing the Wave Hub device off the North Cornwall coast. The final phase began on Friday 3 Sept, with cables being laid on the seabed.

The news of the successful launch was welcomed by UK science minister David Willetts who said the project could help the UK become a leading exponent of marine energy, creating thousands of jobs in the coming decades. "The UK is already leading the way with 25 per cent of the world's wave and tidal technologies being developed here," he said. "This is a huge opportunity for UK business – the sector could be worth £2bn by 2050 and it has the potential to create up to 16,000 jobs by 2040."

South West RDA's Wave Hub general manager Guy Lavender said that the facility would provide a major boost to the UK's wave-energy sector for years to come. "Wave Hub will be on the seabed for the next 25 years, helping the world gain invaluable knowledge about how we tap the vast energy potential of our oceans in the pursuit of clean, abundant, renewable energy and cementing the UK's position at the forefront of this green power revolution," he said.

The project faced a number of delays earlier this summer when equipment problems and weather conditions halted installation of the 25km cable from the device to the shore. In order for the device to become operational, it will now be subjected to a series of tests, with a view to deploying the first marine energy device in 2011.

Picture copyright of South West RDA 2010