Welsh workboat builders and marine engineers Mainstay Marine Solutions Ltd, has won a significant contract for the ‘fabrication and assembly of the main structure’ for Australian-born wave energy developer’s demonstration device ‘mWave’.

Measuring 75m long, 17.5m wide and 5m high, Bombora’s 1.5MW mWave wave energy converting device harnesses the potential of marine energy in the form of pressure on the sea floor.

With Bombora’s initial design phase now complete, Mainstay will commence fabrication of the all-steel structure imminently with delivery of the fully-assembled device to the company’s ro-ro slipway in spring of next year, ready for load-out and launching.

The 1.5MW demonstration device will be one of the most powerful wave energy demonstration devices to be built around the world to date.

Stewart Graves 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.  Building such an innovative device of this magnitude is a great endorsement of our marine engineering capabilities and prospects for the future. The sheer scale of mWave positions itself as an exemplar project within our increasing portfolio of marine renewable energy projects”.

‘Bombora Wave Power Europe Ltd’ (Bombora) established its European headquarters in Pembroke Dock at the end of 2017 and after a period of exciting growth, now employs 21 people with wide ranging disciplines from across the marine energy industry.

Bombora’s project is funded by a £ 10.3m European Regional Development Fund grant awarded by the Welsh European Funding Office.

Unique in design, the mWave 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.

Sam Leighton, Bombora’s Managing Director, commented:

“We are very pleased to be able to award our largest single contract to a company with solid roots in Pembrokeshire helping boost the local economy. The majority of our work to date has been awarded to local companies and there are many more opportunities for the local supply chain to benefit from this innovative project as we continue to roll out our contracting strategy.  Mainstay has already successfully delivered our purpose-built test tank at Pembroke Dock.  We look forward to them delivering a similar high-quality performance with this new contract”.

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.

This latest contract comes just weeks after the Mainstay announcement of securing a contract for the construction of another Wave Energy Converter demonstrating device for AMOG Consulting Ltd.

For further information visit: www.mainstaymarine.co.uk and www.bomborawave.com.