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Displaying items by tag: Laser

The best laid plans often go awry - despite what was set to be a great turnout for the annual Howth Yacht Club Round the Island Race last Saturday at Howth, the weather gods didn't play ball, and a decision was taken 48 hours before the event in the face of an expected easterly gale to cancel the day's sailing (it was a very accurate call – on the day, the waves were sweeping the Howth East Pier almost as if it wasn’t there – Ed.). It meant great disappointment, not only for the series regulars who have been racing in HYC nearly every Sunday since November, but also for the strong visitor turnout. The event was due to see a variety of boats from all over the country, including Fireballs from Cork, RS Aeros from the North and Mermaids from North Dublin.

Here’s success for Ukraine – Oleksandr Bezpalyi of the Obolon SC in Kiev is in the frame at HowthHere’s success for Ukraine – Oleksandr Bezpalyi of the Obolon SC in Kiev is in the frame at Howth

This one’s for West Cork – Rory Lynch of Baltimore SC made good on the East CoastThis one’s for West Cork – Rory Lynch of Baltimore SC made good on the East Coast

However, all was not lost, as the shore-side of the day's agenda could still proceed uninterrupted. The prizegiving for the both Frostbite series and the New Year's Day Race, followed by a lunch and the 6 Nations rugby matches on the big screen gave everyone plenty to look forward to on the day, but we’ll put the rugby down to experience

MANY VOLUNTEERS

Commodore Neil Murphy said a few words to welcome everyone. The main thanks of the event go to the volunteer race officer team, who share weekly duties among themselves and have done so for many years. Harry Gallagher, Jim Lambkin, Liam Dineen, Dave Jones, Richard Kissane, Ronan MacDonell and Neil Murphy as race officers, along with many more volunteers who manage the results, and the RIB crews all do a great job of ensuring that everyone gets great, safe racing done all winter long.

Rising star. Andrei Samoilov collected the trophy for most improved sailorRising star. Andrei Samoilov collected the trophy for most improved sailor

Special mentions were also given to the upcoming 50th Anniversary of the Frostbite series and Laser/ILCA racing in HYC next Autumn, where there will be a number of on and off the water events to mark the special milestone. Winter sailing in HYC has lots to look forward to - a growing PY fleet including GP14s, B14s and RS Aeros out every week set to be joined next year by a fleet of Melges 15s.

“Gee thanks Dad!” Series organiser and prize winner Conor Murphy with Mr Big“Gee thanks Dad!” Series organiser and prize winner Conor Murphy with Mr Big

New talent - Charlie Robertson and crew took the Junior Title in PY.New talent - Charlie Robertson and crew took the Junior Title in PY

As the prizes were given out, great enjoyment was taken in identifying past winners of each of the trophies and reminiscing on years gone by, while also looking forward to the coming years. Most trophies saw new names being added to them this year, and there were many new visitors to the podium places in each class. While most of the prizes are given out for podium finishes in the series, one prize is given each year to recognise the most improved sailor among the participants. This year, Malahide's Andrej Samoilov won this prize in his second season at the HYC Frostbites, as this year he obtained podium results and led the fleet on occasion.

Ciara McMahon is yet another branch of the top sailing clanCiara McMahon is yet another branch of the top sailing clan

The tops! Daragh Sheridan led a successful solo charge with the RS Aero.The tops! Daragh Sheridan led a successful solo charge with the RS Aero.

All prizes awarded and photos are below.

2023 HYC Pre-Christmas Series

• ILCA 7 (Courtney Cup): Rory Lynch (Baltimore SC), Daragh Kelleher (SSC), Dave Kirwan (MYC)
• ILCA 6 (Stafford Trophy): Tom Fox (Rush SC), Darragh Peelo (Malahide YC), Peter Hassett
• ILCA 4 (Frazer Casey Firefly Cup): Oleksandr Bezpalyi (Obolon SC), Harry Dunne (Howth YC), Stan O'Rourke (MYC/HYC)
• PY: Daragh Sheridan (RS Aero, Howth YC), John Phelan (RS Aero, Howth YC), Jeremy Beshoff & Declan McManus (B14, Howth YC)
• PY2: Charlie Robertson

2024 New Year's Day Race

• ILCA 7 (New Year's Day Mug): Colm Cunningham (Malahide YC)
• ILCA 6: Peter Hassett
• PY: Daragh Sheridan

2024 Post-Christmas Series

• ILCA 7 (Rowan Trophy): Conor Murphy (Howth YC), Dan O'Connell (Cobh SC), Rory Lynch (Baltimore SC)
• ILCA 6 (Elliot Cup): Tom Fox (Rush SC), Vikor Samoilov (MYC/HYC), Ciara McMahon (Howth YC)
• ILCA 4 (Fitzpatrick Cup): Stan O'Rourke (MYC/HYC), Oleksandr Bezpalyi (Obolon SC), Charlie Power (Howth YC)
• PY: Daragh Sheridan (RS Aero, Howth YC), Alan Blay & Hugh McNally (GP14, Howth YC), Sam Street & Josh Lloyd (GP14, Blessington LSC)

Peter Hassett was in the frame in ILCA 6sPeter Hassett was in the frame in ILCA 6s

All welcome. Commodore with Daragh Peelo of MalahideAll welcome. Commodore with Daragh Peelo of Malahide

Dave Kirwan was another of the Estuary Invaders from MalahideDave Kirwan was another of the Estuary Invaders from Malahide

Young Stan O’Rourke successfully carried the banner for a renowned Dublin sailing nameYoung Stan O’Rourke successfully carried the banner for a renowned Dublin sailing name

Commodore with John Phelan, whose successes come inshore and offshore, winter and summer.Commodore with John Phelan, whose successes come inshore and offshore, winter and summer

Published in Howth YC
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Mark Lyttle’s devotion to the Laser/ILCA class is truly world league, as he has continued to race the boat for decades, from success at junior level right up to becoming World Grand Master Champion on Dublin Bay in 2018. There’s no sign of letup, as February’s ILCA World Masters in Australia saw him regularly on the podium, and he finished a sunlit but extremely demanding series with the Bronze in the main division to make him an Afloat.ie “Sailor of the Month”.   

Published in Sailor of the Month
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The ILCA European Championships in Athens has experienced another day without racing due to light winds.

The event, which began on Sunday, has completed just three out of the planned eight races for the women's ILCA 6 class, while the men in the ILCA 7 have had two races so far.

Three Irish sailors, Finn Lynch of the National Yacht Club and Ewan and Eve McMahon of Howth Yacht Club, were among the 300 sailors hoping for wind but were left disappointed.

Lynch and McMahon posted nearly matching scores in the only races so far. Eve McMahon has had a consistent showing in the ILCA 6 division.

Due to the calm weather, organisers have cancelled the Olympic format medal race final on Friday instead of focusing on the fleet races. The championship requires four completed races to determine a winner, but the hope is that the qualification round will be completed on Thursday, allowing for Gold fleet racing on Friday to decide the event.

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Irish Masters ILCA/Laser champion Sean Craig of the Royal St. George Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire Harbour shot straight to the top of the ILCA 6 Masters World Championship with two fourth places scored in breezy conditions in the opening races of the Adelaide, Australia-based regatta. 

Craig, on eight points, leads Australian Colin Beashel by one in the Grand Master division after two races sailed back to back.  Lying third is American Andrew Holdsworth on 10 points. 

The competition continues until next Saturday, February 10th. 

The event follows last week's exploits at the same venue, where Finn Lynch and Ewan McMahon competed in the first of three trials at the 2024 ILCA 7 World Championships.

ILCA Grand Master Sean Craig competing on his home waters of Dublin Bay Photo: AfloatILCA Grand Master Sean Craig competing on his home waters of Dublin Bay Photo: Afloat

As regular Afloat readers know, Craig earned his first Grand Master title last May when he finished top of the Barcelona Masters Championships in Spain.

Spain proved a successful hunting ground for the 59-year-old Dun Laoghaire ace, who won a Bronze Medal at the EurILCA Masters Europeans at L’Escala in Spain in October 2022.

Scroll down the results sheet (below) to read the latest ILCA 6 (Radial) Grand Master scores.

Published in Laser
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Howth Yacht Club's heavy weather specialist Eve McMahon conquered strong Moroccan wind and waves to win the single race of day three and move into the overall lead of the ILCA U21 World Championships in Tangier.

The Paris 2024 campaigner is one of five Irish sailors competing. 

Trademark Atlantic waves and Mediterranean winds over 25 knots produced exciting conditions for the Mens ILCA 7 and ILCA 6 Women U21 racing.

The ILCA 6 fleet had two starts, the first being called back on a general recall, and the second good start was held under a black flag.

As the race progressed, the wind was gusty at the top mark, giving momentary respite before a tough downwind leg.

In first position at mark 1 was McMahon (IRL 216111), who was also today’s winner, closely followed by SUI 220286.

The situation in the ILCA 7 yellow fleet was similar as the first sailor to round mark 1, UKR 222721, was also the winner of race 1. In the ILCA 7 blue fleet, the top position went to ITA 221725.

Results are here

Published in Laser
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Howth Yacht Club's Eve McMahon is lying second overall after four races sailed at the 2023 ILCA U21 World Championships in Tangier, Morocco.

The Paris 2024 campaigner is one of five Irish sailors competing. 

Wednesday started cloudy, with rain showers coming and going over the racecourse and the city of Tangier.

The sea conditions were slightly different today as there was a swell from the northwest and the wind from the southwest. The wind conditions were quite unstable across the racecourse, as the wind at the start line was more substantial than at mark 1, which was significantly weaker. The wind intensity ranged from 6 knots at the top marks and up to 12 knots at the start line, with gusts up to 15 knots.

In the first race of the day, the ILCA 6 fleet had three starting procedures, starting with a general recall, followed by a cancelled start due to a wind shift, and a final good start under a black flag. The ILCA 6 first race was the outer course, with Josephine Heegaard from Denmark arriving first to mark one. The race was very close until the last moment when the race was won by Italian Emma Mattivi. In the second race, the winner was again Emma Mattivi; nonetheless, with one discard after four races, the top female sailor was Josephine Heegaard.

In the male ILCA 7 yellow fleet, the racing was tight, and each sailor demonstrated their skill and expertise in the very technical swell and shifty conditions. In race one, the first place went to Italian Attilio Borio, and in race 2 Haruto Kuroda from Japan took the top spot. In the blue fleet, Finley Dickinson of United Kingdom won both races of the day. The top Irish sailor is Royal St. George's Ficachra McDonnell in 66th.

Results are here

Published in Laser
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Royal Cork ILCA (Lasers) hosted the grand finale of the ILCA summer sprint series on Sunday 17th. The series, including ILCA racing across five venues throughout the summer, saw twenty-seven ILCAs compete in three different classes from five clubs on the Curlane Bank in Cork Harbour.

The favourable weather throughout the day from the east held well, allowing the sailors to complete four races on the day. There was some very tight racing in a strong ILCA 4 fleet, making for an exciting competition.

In the ILCA 6 class, three sailors finished on the same points tally, making it even more exciting to decide the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place. The tri-series trophies were presented based on the best three results from the five regattas.

ILCA Summer Sprint Series racingILCA Summer Sprint Series racing

The series started in June at Glandore Harbour Sailing Club and was followed by Kinsale Yacht Club in July, Bantry Bay Sailing Club in August, Iniscarra Sailing and Kayaking Club, and the finale in Royal Cork. It allowed local sailors to explore some of Cork's great sailing venues throughout the summer.

Each regatta used the sprint format with five quick 20-25-minute races with a single discard on the day. A social barbeque was then hosted at each club for sailors, parents, and helpers. Over fifty ILCA sailors raced in at least one of the regattas throughout the summer.

Special appreciation was given to Harriet Emerson in Glandore, John O'Sullivan in Kinsale, Kathryn Kingston in Bantry, and Aoife O'Herlihy in Iniscarra for hosting the previous events in the series. 

Royal Cork's Rear Admiral Dinghies, Maurice Collins expressed his joy for the successful conclusion of the series, as he was pictured with tri-series winners Eolann Miles (ILCA 4), Jonathan O'Shaughnessy (ILCA 7), Andrew Kingston (ILCA 6), and class captain Eddie Kingston at the Triseries prizegivingRoyal Cork's Rear Admiral Dinghies, Maurice Collins expressed his joy for the successful conclusion of the series, as he was pictured with tri-series winners Eolann Miles (ILCA 4), Jonathan O'Shaughnessy (ILCA 7), Andrew Kingston (ILCA 6), and class captain Eddie Kingston at the Triseries prizegiving

For those who missed the summer sprint series, more ILCA sailing is coming up at the RCYC Frostbite League in November.

Published in Laser
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Three sailors from the Dun Laoghaire Harbour ILCA fleet recently competed in Douarnenez, France, showcasing their skills against a formidable field of over 270 competitors across 31 countries at the 2023 ILCA European Championships, with all three Irish sailors achieving at least one top-20 result.

Despite the Breton coast typically experiencing a steady 15-17kts sea breeze, the sailors faced challenging conditions due to the unprecedented hot and humid weather, which produced a combination of light and shifty conditions along with heavier sea breezes and 1.5m swells.

Hugh Delap, Brendan Hughes, and Ali Robinson began their campaign last October at the start of the local DMYC Frostbite series. They competed in provincial events and ultimately ended up in Howth at the end of August, where they raced in 30 knots of wind. 

This proved hugely beneficial to all three in terms of strength and conditioning ahead of the Europeans.

Brendan Hughes rounding the windward mark at the ILCA European Championships in FrancBrendan Hughes rounding the windward mark at the ILCA European Championships in France

The Irish sailors competed in the Apprentice and Masters fleet, which included John Emett, coach of Lijia Xu, the 2012 Olympic gold medalist. Also in this fleet were the current female European champion, a number of previous Olympic sailors, and national and ex-world champion ILCA sailors.

Ali Robinson defending on the downwind at the ILCA European Championships in FranceAli Robinson defending on the downwind at the ILCA European Championships in France

All three sailors spoke about their incredible learnings from the event and emphasised the intense but physically and mentally enhancing experience of having six days of racing in a row. The sailors plan to build on their learnings and continue to develop physically, technically, and mentally, with their sights set on the 2024 Europeans in Portugal and the 2025 Worlds to be held in Hayling Island, UK.

The beauty of the ILCA Masters sailing format is that anyone over the age of 35 can compete against gold medallists, and World and European champions, and continue to compete for as long as they can get into the boat.

Published in Laser
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The Howth Yacht Club (HYC) hosted International Laser Class Association (ILCA) National Championships and saw sailors from three different clubs take the top spots across the three fleets.

Despite losing a day of racing due to strong winds and rough seas, the remaining two days provided plenty of action.

On Saturday, the start of the races was delayed due to the remnants of Friday's storm, but the wind eventually moderated to 15-23 knots, allowing the ILCA 7s to complete four races and the ILCA 6 and 4 fleets to complete three races each. The choppy conditions from the south-easterly breeze made it a challenging race course.

Sunday saw more manageable conditions, with a 12-20 knot breeze welcoming the sailors to the race course. Scorie Walls and her team completed four races for each of the fleets.

Local sailor Jamie McMahon, who had just returned from a summer in the USA, took the crown in the ILCA 7s, narrowly beating Australian Isaac Schotte by one point.

Jonathan O'Shaughnessy from the Royal Cork Yacht Club (RCYC) had remarkably consistent results and came in third, while Ballyholme's Colin Leonard was the first master and came in fourth.

In the ILCA 6s, East Antrim's Tom Coulter won by one point from RStGYC's Fiachra McDonnell, despite McDonnell's storming day two with three of four race wins. HYC's Sienna Wright was first lady and secured her spot to represent Ireland at the World Sailing Youth Championships.

Carlingford Sailing Club's Lucy Ives showed the rest how it's done in the ILCA 4s, winning the fleet, followed by Liam Duggan (RCYC) and Patrick Foley (RStGYC).

The team trophy was awarded to the club with the best result across the three fleets, which went to RCYC for the second year in a row. HYC and RStGYC were also contenders, but RCYC was the strongest across the fleets.

The event was sponsored by Rooster, who provided prizes for the event, as well as bibs for competitors. HYC played host well, providing food and entertainment ashore for all sailors, with photos from the day's racing displayed on a big screen and music playing, creating a great atmosphere for all involved.

Results here

Published in Laser
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Hungary's Maria Erdi won the final gold medal at the 2023 Allianz Sailing World Championships in The Hague in a tight medal race.

The 25-year-old moved up from third place to claim her first world title in the ILCA 6 medal race.

Australian sailor Matt Wearn confirmed his own world title in the ILCA 7, adding to his Olympic gold won in Tokyo 2020.

The Netherlands finished as the most successful nation, with gold medals for Luuc van Opzeeland in the iQFOiL and Bart Lambriex and Floris van de Werken in the 49er, retaining the IOC President's Trophy for the best nation.

Australian sailor Matt Wearn is carried ashore after winning the ILCA 7 division at the Allianz Sailing World Championships in The Hague Photo: Sailing EnergyAustralian sailor Matt Wearn is carried ashore after winning the ILCA 7 division at the Allianz Sailing World Championships in The Hague Photo: Sailing Energy

As Afloat readers know, Ireland's Finn Lynch from the National Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire won Ireland a place at the Paris 2024 Games at The Hague in the ILCA 7 class.  

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Ireland's Offshore Renewable Energy

Because of Ireland's location at the Atlantic edge of the EU, it has more offshore energy potential than most other countries in Europe. The conditions are suitable for the development of the full range of current offshore renewable energy technologies.

Offshore Renewable Energy FAQs

Offshore renewable energy draws on the natural energy provided by wind, wave and tide to convert it into electricity for industry and domestic consumption.

Offshore wind is the most advanced technology, using fixed wind turbines in coastal areas, while floating wind is a developing technology more suited to deeper water. In 2018, offshore wind provided a tiny fraction of global electricity supply, but it is set to expand strongly in the coming decades into a USD 1 trillion business, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). It says that turbines are growing in size and in power capacity, which in turn is "delivering major performance and cost improvements for offshore wind farms".

The global offshore wind market grew nearly 30% per year between 2010 and 2018, according to the IEA, due to rapid technology improvements, It calculated that about 150 new offshore wind projects are in active development around the world. Europe in particular has fostered the technology's development, led by Britain, Germany and Denmark, but China added more capacity than any other country in 2018.

A report for the Irish Wind Energy Assocation (IWEA) by the Carbon Trust – a British government-backed limited company established to accelerate Britain's move to a low carbon economy - says there are currently 14 fixed-bottom wind energy projects, four floating wind projects and one project that has yet to choose a technology at some stage of development in Irish waters. Some of these projects are aiming to build before 2030 to contribute to the 5GW target set by the Irish government, and others are expected to build after 2030. These projects have to secure planning permission, obtain a grid connection and also be successful in a competitive auction in the Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (RESS).

The electricity generated by each turbine is collected by an offshore electricity substation located within the wind farm. Seabed cables connect the offshore substation to an onshore substation on the coast. These cables transport the electricity to land from where it will be used to power homes, farms and businesses around Ireland. The offshore developer works with EirGrid, which operates the national grid, to identify how best to do this and where exactly on the grid the project should connect.

The new Marine Planning and Development Management Bill will create a new streamlined system for planning permission for activity or infrastructure in Irish waters or on the seabed, including offshore wind farms. It is due to be published before the end of 2020 and enacted in 2021.

There are a number of companies aiming to develop offshore wind energy off the Irish coast and some of the larger ones would be ESB, SSE Renewables, Energia, Statkraft and RWE.

There are a number of companies aiming to develop offshore wind energy off the Irish coast and some of the larger ones would be ESB, SSE Renewables, Energia, Statkraft and RWE. Is there scope for community involvement in offshore wind? The IWEA says that from the early stages of a project, the wind farm developer "should be engaging with the local community to inform them about the project, answer their questions and listen to their concerns". It says this provides the community with "the opportunity to work with the developer to help shape the final layout and design of the project". Listening to fishing industry concerns, and how fishermen may be affected by survey works, construction and eventual operation of a project is "of particular concern to developers", the IWEA says. It says there will also be a community benefit fund put in place for each project. It says the final details of this will be addressed in the design of the RESS (see below) for offshore wind but it has the potential to be "tens of millions of euro over the 15 years of the RESS contract". The Government is also considering the possibility that communities will be enabled to invest in offshore wind farms though there is "no clarity yet on how this would work", the IWEA says.

Based on current plans, it would amount to around 12 GW of offshore wind energy. However, the IWEA points out that is unlikely that all of the projects planned will be completed. The industry says there is even more significant potential for floating offshore wind off Ireland's west coast and the Programme for Government contains a commitment to develop a long-term plan for at least 30 GW of floating offshore wind in our deeper waters.

There are many different models of turbines. The larger a turbine, the more efficient it is in producing electricity at a good price. In choosing a turbine model the developer will be conscious of this ,but also has to be aware the impact of the turbine on the environment, marine life, biodiversity and visual impact. As a broad rule an offshore wind turbine will have a tip-height of between 165m and 215m tall. However, turbine technology is evolving at a rapid rate with larger more efficient turbines anticipated on the market in the coming years.

 

The Renewable Electricity Support Scheme is designed to support the development of renewable energy projects in Ireland. Under the scheme wind farms and solar farms compete against each other in an auction with the projects which offer power at the lowest price awarded contracts. These contracts provide them with a guaranteed price for their power for 15 years. If they obtain a better price for their electricity on the wholesale market they must return the difference to the consumer.

Yes. The first auction for offshore renewable energy projects is expected to take place in late 2021.

Cost is one difference, and technology is another. Floating wind farm technology is relatively new, but allows use of deeper water. Ireland's 50-metre contour line is the limit for traditional bottom-fixed wind farms, and it is also very close to population centres, which makes visibility of large turbines an issue - hence the attraction of floating structures Do offshore wind farms pose a navigational hazard to shipping? Inshore fishermen do have valid concerns. One of the first steps in identifying a site as a potential location for an offshore wind farm is to identify and assess the level of existing marine activity in the area and this particularly includes shipping. The National Marine Planning Framework aims to create, for the first time, a plan to balance the various kinds of offshore activity with the protection of the Irish marine environment. This is expected to be published before the end of 2020, and will set out clearly where is suitable for offshore renewable energy development and where it is not - due, for example, to shipping movements and safe navigation.

YEnvironmental organisations are concerned about the impact of turbines on bird populations, particularly migrating birds. A Danish scientific study published in 2019 found evidence that larger birds were tending to avoid turbine blades, but said it didn't have sufficient evidence for smaller birds – and cautioned that the cumulative effect of farms could still have an impact on bird movements. A full environmental impact assessment has to be carried out before a developer can apply for planning permission to develop an offshore wind farm. This would include desk-based studies as well as extensive surveys of the population and movements of birds and marine mammals, as well as fish and seabed habitats. If a potential environmental impact is identified the developer must, as part of the planning application, show how the project will be designed in such a way as to avoid the impact or to mitigate against it.

A typical 500 MW offshore wind farm would require an operations and maintenance base which would be on the nearby coast. Such a project would generally create between 80-100 fulltime jobs, according to the IWEA. There would also be a substantial increase to in-direct employment and associated socio-economic benefit to the surrounding area where the operation and maintenance hub is located.

The recent Carbon Trust report for the IWEA, entitled Harnessing our potential, identified significant skills shortages for offshore wind in Ireland across the areas of engineering financial services and logistics. The IWEA says that as Ireland is a relatively new entrant to the offshore wind market, there are "opportunities to develop and implement strategies to address the skills shortages for delivering offshore wind and for Ireland to be a net exporter of human capital and skills to the highly competitive global offshore wind supply chain". Offshore wind requires a diverse workforce with jobs in both transferable (for example from the oil and gas sector) and specialist disciplines across apprenticeships and higher education. IWEA have a training network called the Green Tech Skillnet that facilitates training and networking opportunities in the renewable energy sector.

It is expected that developing the 3.5 GW of offshore wind energy identified in the Government's Climate Action Plan would create around 2,500 jobs in construction and development and around 700 permanent operations and maintenance jobs. The Programme for Government published in 2020 has an enhanced target of 5 GW of offshore wind which would create even more employment. The industry says that in the initial stages, the development of offshore wind energy would create employment in conducting environmental surveys, community engagement and development applications for planning. As a site moves to construction, people with backgrounds in various types of engineering, marine construction and marine transport would be recruited. Once the site is up and running , a project requires a team of turbine technicians, engineers and administrators to ensure the wind farm is fully and properly maintained, as well as crew for the crew transfer vessels transporting workers from shore to the turbines.

The IEA says that today's offshore wind market "doesn't even come close to tapping the full potential – with high-quality resources available in most major markets". It estimates that offshore wind has the potential to generate more than 420 000 Terawatt hours per year (TWh/yr) worldwide – as in more than 18 times the current global electricity demand. One Terawatt is 114 megawatts, and to put it in context, Scotland it has a population a little over 5 million and requires 25 TWh/yr of electrical energy.

Not as advanced as wind, with anchoring a big challenge – given that the most effective wave energy has to be in the most energetic locations, such as the Irish west coast. Britain, Ireland and Portugal are regarded as most advanced in developing wave energy technology. The prize is significant, the industry says, as there are forecasts that varying between 4000TWh/yr to 29500TWh/yr. Europe consumes around 3000TWh/year.

The industry has two main umbrella organisations – the Irish Wind Energy Association, which represents both onshore and offshore wind, and the Marine Renewables Industry Association, which focuses on all types of renewable in the marine environment.

©Afloat 2020