Mainstay to fabricate wave energy device

With Australian-born Bombora’s initial design phase now complete, Welsh workboat builder and marine engineering specialist Mainstay will commence fabrication of the all-steel structure imminently. Delivery of the fully-assembled device to the company’s ro-ro slipway is due spring of next year.

Stewart Graves, managing director of Mainstay, commented: “As major supporters of marine energy development and its potential for the future, we are delighted to have secured this contract. Mainstay has invested heavily to establish ourselves as the ‘go-to’ company for marine energy fabrication projects.”

Series of membranes

Measuring 75m long, 17.5m wide and 5m high, mWave harnesses the potential of marine energy in the form of pressure on the sea floor. The device features a series of membranes which rests beneath the ocean’s surface on the sea floor. As waves pass over the device, air inside the membranes is pushed into a duct and through a turbine to generate electricity.

Mainstay has already delivered the project’s purpose-built test tank at Pembroke Dock, where component testing is being carried out.

The mWave device will be installed at the Marine Energy Testing Area off the coast of Pembrokeshire for a 6-12 month test period, commencing in the summer of 2020.

Bombora established its European headquarters in Pembroke Dock at the end of 2017. Its project is funded by a GB£10.3m European Regional Development Fund grant, awarded by the Welsh European Funding Office.

Mainstay Marine Solutions will be exhibiting at Seawork 2019 on stand PY105.

By Rebecca Jeffrey