International WaTERS discusses common issues and standards

The European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) hosted the third International WaTERS (Wave and Tidal Energy Research Sites) workshop on 26 February at the International Conference on Ocean Energy (ICOE) 2016 in Edinburgh.

Nine countries from around the globe were represented, including Canada, France, Ireland, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, the UK and the USA.

Discussions were focused on key issues identified by participating organisations as: environmental monitoring and licencing; marine operations, electrical operations and safety; and funding research programmes, government support and business planning.

It was concluded that the network of test sites can play an important role in ensuring common research and demonstration agendas, to increase the effectiveness of research programmes and avoid duplication of effort.

Established at EMEC’s International Test Centres Symposium in Orkney in 2013, the International WaTERS network brings together operational and planned test sites from around the world to discuss common issues and agree actions for collaborating for the good of marine energy.

In 2014, the network met in Nova Scotia, Canada, at an event jointly hosted by EMEC and the Fundy Ocean Research Center for Energy (FORCE).