Carnegie expands market reach with new wave energy product for aquaculture sector

Wave energy company Carnegie Clean Energy and its partners have launched an AU$3.4 million MoorPower demonstrator project whose aim is to offer a clean power solution for decarbonisation of aquaculture sector and other offshore activities using the energy of the waves.

MoorPower is a CETO-derived wave energy product designed for moored vessels and offers a solution to the challenge of securing clean and reliable energy for offshore activities, reducing reliance on diesel generation.

The initial target market for MoorPower is offshore vessels – such as feeding barges for the aquaculture sector – but the future market is broader and includes the many other offshore operations that require energy, according to Carnegie.

Over the next two years, Carnegie will design, install and operate a scaled demonstrator of the MoorPower technology just offshore from its headquarters and research facility in North Fremantle, Western Australia, the company informed.

The AU$3.4m MoorPower Scaled Demonstrator project will be delivered with funding support from the Blue Economy CRC and in close collaboration with a consortium of partners including two of Australia’s largest aquaculture companies, Huon Aquaculture and Tassal Group.

Academic and industry partners include DNV GL Australia, Advanced Composite Structures Australia, University of Tasmania, Climate KIC/Australian Ocean Energy Group, AMC Search and University of Queensland.

The project is supported by AU$1.35 million cash from the Blue Economy CRC, AU$265,000 from Carnegie and AU$1.8 million of in-kind support from all the project partners.

MoorPower was developed by Carnegie with the goal of decarbonising the energy needs of offshore operations, particularly in aquaculture.

As the aquaculture sector moves operations further offshore, operations such as feeding barges will no longer have access to shore-based power and the reliance on diesel generators comes with many associated costs, carbon emissions and environmental risks, including fuel storage and spillage risks while refuelling offshore.

This challenge presents an opportunity to utilise wave energy, an untapped energy source constantly flowing around offshore facilities.

However, Carnegie noted that MoorPower can be deployed for any type of moored vessel and is not limited to fish farming.

Carnegie’s vision for the MoorPower product is that the technology will present an integrated solution with other offshore renewable energy systems including hydrogen and batteries.

John Whittington, CEO of Blue Economy CRC, said: “We look forward to the opportunities the MoorPower technology presents to the aquaculture sector and the expansion into high energy offshore sites utilising clean and reliable energy solutions.

“The project allows the opportunity for collaboration between experts in the field led by Carnegie Clean Energy together with project partners across the country”.

Mark Asman, head of aquaculture at Tassal Group, added: “Partnerships like this ensure our industry continues to deliver the benefits of high-performance sustainable innovation, research and development (R&D) and change practices.

“Through the introduction of novel oceanic renewable energy sources, aquaculture will continue to offer healthy seafood produced with a low carbon footprint”.

Carnegie’s CEO, Jonathan Fiévez noted: “MoorPower reduces or removes the reliance on diesel and provides clean, reliable, predictable energy to support the growth of a diverse sustainable blue economy. The technology also expands our market reach, while complementing the technical advancements being made on our CETO technology.

“We are excited to expand our product portfolio with the addition of MoorPower and are eager to progress and deliver both the CETO and MoorPower products to the market”.