Aquatera delivers marine energy roadmap for Peru

 
UK-based energy and environmental consultancy Aquatera has published a study which outlines the prospects for the development of aquatic renewable energy in Peru.

The year-long study examined the potential energy markets and generation areas for wave, tidal, floating wind, floating solar and river hydrokinetic technologies.

The work covered each administrative region of Peru from the Amazon, the high Andes and along the Pacific coast giving region by region analysis as well as a national synopsis of possible future energy generation scenarios.

The report provides recommendations around resource characterization, the regulatory framework and R&D needs, as well as relating to supply chain and infrastructure requirements, according to Aquatera.

It also outlines the steps that government, industry and the R&D community could take to enable and support the development of aquatic renewable energy projects.

For each of the four aquatic renewable energies considered, assessments of resource potential, technical conditions, enabling infrastructure and market availability/value were undertaken for each region in Peru, Aquatera said.

The results show that the greatest resource areas are to be found at sea in the Pacific North and Central regions and in inland lakes and reservoirs in the Atlantic North and Titicaca regions.

The exploitable resource areas identified in the Pacific South, Atlantic Central and Atlantic South are still significant but noticeably lower, according to Aquatera.

Gareth Davies, Managing Director of Aquatera, said: “The challenges faced by countries such as Peru to meet the agreed climate change targets are immense. This study has shown, for the first time, the critical contribution that aquatic energy can make to Peru’s future energy mix. Furthermore, the detailed regional analysis that this study provides, starts to highlight how and where this potential lies and could be developed.”

Three development scenarios for aquatic renewables have been implemented by the year 2037, thus there is a low capacity scenario, a medium capacity scenario (basic case) and a high capacity scenario.

Natalia Rojas, Project Manager for the study, said: “We look forward to a growing momentum in the adoption of aquatic energy solutions in Peru which can clearly make a major contribution to Peru achieving its climate change abatement goals.”

Funded by the UK government’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office Prosperity Fund, Aquatera has worked closely with the Peruvian Ministry of Mining and Energy and The Ministry of Environment to ensure that the full situation regarding energy markets, available resources and technology deployment opportunities appropriate to Peru were considered.

Aquatera also drew on the UK’s the expertise in aquatic energy with its own in house experts leading a team that included the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) and the International Centre for Island Technology (ICIT).

Local experts from the University of Engineering and Technology (UTEC) in Lima and other local specialists also worked alongside the Aquatera team.