The Basque Country is advancing towards decarbonisation with a series of projects that have made the region a major reference point in marine energy technologies. EVE, the Basque energy agency, is promoting R&D, demonstration and industrial transfer, building unique infrastructures and collaborating with companies and technology centres.
A key part of this development is the Biscay Marine Energy Platform (BiMEP), an offshore test site located off Armintza (Lemoiz, Bizkaia). With grid connection, oceanographic instrumentation and nearby port access, the site enables prototype wave energy converters and floating wind platforms to be trialled at depths of between 50 and 90 metres. The facility is fitted with four 5 MW lines for power uptake. BiMEP is enabling European developers to test their equipment, monitoring strategies and maintenance operations under real-world conditions, thus speeding up time-to-market.
BiMEP also operates the wave energy plant at Mutriku. The facility is built into the outer pier of the harbour and uses Oscillating Water Column (OWC) technology. It has sixteen 18.5 kW turbines, with total capacity of 296 kW, and has become the focus of international interest, both for its continuous operation and its role as a test site for turbines, generators and control strategies. Since it was commissioned, the plant has fed over 3 GWh into the grid, giving it the highest cumulative production of any wave power plant in the world.
EVE is engaged in a number of initiatives designed to promote the technological development of the marine energy sector, especially in the field of wave energy (given the energy potential of the Basque coast). Prominent among these are the Innovative Public Procurement programmes ‘EuropeWave’ —for developing and testing wave energy converters at the BiMEP site, and ‘TurboWave’, for developing and testing innovative air-driven turbines at the Mutriku plant. These initiatives have financial backing from the EU and EVE itself and centre on fostering expansion of the wave energy value chain, developing technology and products and promoting experimental demonstrations in offshore environments as a way of making wave energy a commercially viable part of the Basque energy mix.
As a result, the Basque Country can now offer a complete ecosystem for ocean energy: onshore and offshore infrastructure, agents operating throughout the value chain, and a fully prepared industrial port environment to facilitate commercial roll-out.
