Sustainable Marine Technologies (SMT) Restructures to take lead role as Ocean Renewables Developer

Sustainable Marine Technologies personnel working on a marine renewable energy deployment project.

‘SMT will lead the development of innovative and cost effective deployment solutions to ensure Marine Renewable Energy becomes a reality' says MD.

Innovative renewables company, Sustainable Marine Technologies (SMT), is restructuring its operations to take on today’s greatest challenge to ocean renewable energy – the high costs of device deployment and maintenance access.

The dynamic marine integration engineering company, which only last year was nominated for Best Newcomer in the international Tidal Awards, will now become a technology developer.

It has set itself the specific goal of developing a new generation of deployment and access solutions to create a major step change in reducing costs, thereby helping enable marine energy to become commercially viable.

To achieve this SMT is reshaping its business and investing in new technology, strengthening its team with additional senior personnel and developing the company’s own unique key enabling technologies.

Already Sustainable Marine Technologies has started work on driving down deployment and maintenance access costs for horizontal axis tidal turbines, and Jason Hayman, Managing Director, and David Stoddart-Scott, Operations Director, are set to reveal exciting and innovative developments for tidal stream energy on SMT’s stand at All Energy 2011 in May.

These are expected to ease access as well as reduce costs and risks, to make deployment in sites such as Pentland Firth much more viable.

Says Jason Hayman: “SMT will lead the development of innovative and cost effective deployment and access solutions to ensure marine renewable energy becomes a reality.

 “Our experience in working on live tidal deployment projects in both Korea and the UK with clients such as Voith Hydro Ocean Current Technologies, our co-operation with supply chain partners and our participation in industry events and discussions has made it clear that the main hurdle to ocean renewable energy becoming genuinely commercially viable is the cost of deployment and access.

“'To meet the cost projections for the industry presented by RenewableUK in its recent ‘Channelling The Energy’ report it will necessary to make a substantial investment in the development of process technologies that benefit the industry as a whole.

“Until we substantially reduce the costs and resources required by its deployment, marine renewable energy will continue to struggle to be competitive and may never reach its true potential. We cannot afford to let this happen.”

Sustainable Marine Technologies is also looking to form alliances with other organisations with similar aims and objectives.

Says Jason Hayman: “We are currently structuring a network of companies and organisations who share our vision.

“We are in discussions with a number of parties, including commercial enterprises, universities, government departments, venture capitalists and renewable energy bodies to push this forward.

“We welcome talks with any organisations which feel they can contribute to overcoming the problems of deployment and access, and will work with us in ensuring marine renewables secure a central role in meeting the World’s energy needs in the future.”

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