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Wave Energy Along the Coast of Southern Africa
Figure 1: Mean Annual Average Wave Power Distribution (kW/m) of the
readily be installed in any coastal or port development to supply
South-west Coastal Zone Based on 10 Years of Hindcast Wave Data
1
power and provide sheltered waters for anchorage or coastal
protection provided that the correct orientation to the dominant
02550km
wave direction can be achieved. This dual functionality will reduce the
Scale
initial capital cost of the device and there is a greater likelihood of
obtaining permission to deploy a prototype within an existing coastal63
59
development.
4
A doctorate study is currently under way to perform a
55
6,400,000 detailed design of the ShoreSWEC device by means of physical and
51
St Helena Bay
numerical model studies.
47
N
43
39 Commercial Developments
356,350,000
Southern Africa’s abundant wave energy resource and great
Saldanha Bay
31
potential for wave energy development has, in recent times, attracted
27
the attention of international developers of WEC technology. The
23
Dassen Island
Australian company Oceanlinx plans to develop a 15MW wave farm on
19
6,300,000
15
the Namibian coast. Finavera Renewables contracted a local coastal
11
engineering consultancy to conduct a preliminary feasibility study on
7
developing a wave farm on the south-west coast of South Africa in
Table Bay
3
2006. Another commercial project includes the Scottish-based Pelamis
6,250,000
Wave Power Ltd identifying sites on the southern Cape coast of South
Hout Bay
Africa for deployment of their Pelamis attenuator WEC device after an
initial resource assessment.
4
False Bay
6,200,000
Ocean Energy Workshops
Southern Africa’s first ocean energy workshop, hosted by the CentreCape Point
Hangklip
for Renewable and Sustainable Energy Studies (CRSES) on behalf of
150,000 200,000 250,000 300,000
the South African National Energy Research Institute (SANERI), was
held near Cape Town on 21 February 2008. The workshop was a
Figure 2: Partial Cross-sectional View of the ShoreSWEC
huge success, with over 60 delegates representing academia and the
public and private sectors participating. The strong interest in ocean
energy development in South Africa led to a follow-on workshop on
18 September 2009.
Opportunities for Wave Energy Development in
Southern Africa
Wave energy development has the potential to play a significant role
in future energy generation in southern Africa, and South Africa in
particular, due to the following drivers:
the South African government has pledged its support for
sustainable power generation by setting a target of 10TW hours per
annum to be generated by renewable energy sources by 2013;
South Africa’s national utility is under increased pressure to further
develop its renewable energy portfolio considering that almost all of
its current energy generation is from coal-fired power stations;
the cost of electricity in South Africa has increased significantly
in the last few years and is set to increase even more in the
coming years, making wave energy more cost-competitive than
conventional energy sources;
seeing that most of the existing generation capacity is inland
approximately 1,500km away from the coastal areas, additional
connected to high- and low-pressure ducts that run along the length generation capacity at the coast will strengthen the national grid;
4
of the roof of the device. The ducts form a closed-circuit pump system development of the wave energy industry in South Africa will
that drives a unidirectional turbine (see Figure 2). benefit other related industries such as coastal engineering
consultancies, naval architects and shipping/port facilities;
The power take-off (PTO) of the ShoreSWEC is located above water wave energy varies seasonally, peaking in winter, making it ideally
onshore, making it easily accessible for maintenance purposes and suited to supplement renewable energy sources such as wind and
less exposed to the corrosive sea environment. The ShoreSWEC can solar power, which is at minimum capacity in winter in South Africa;
MODERN ENERGY REVIEW VOLUME 2 ISSUE 1
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