Influence of automated maneuvers on the economic feasibility of tidal energy farms

Abstract

The vertiginous increase in the global demand for energy, together with the imbalance between the period during when fossil resources were formed and the rhythm of their consumption, makes it necessary to promote renewable energies in order for energy consumption to coexist with sustainable development. One of the most important challenges as regards renewable energy generation is to be able to move to a new low carbon economy in which energy demands can be met while the levels of CO2 emitted are reduced. In this respect, most of the energy obtained from marine currents, the most predictable renewable energy source, is located at great depths. In order to take advantage of this energy, different types of technologies are currently being developed whose economic viability necessitates a reduction in costs. The development of automated systems that will allow the orientation and depth of tidal energy converters to change automatically in order to reduce maintenance maneuvers and take advantage of the energy resource in an optimal manner is, therefore, essential. This paper analyzes the economic feasibility of the automation of installation and maintenance maneuvers on tidal energy farms by means of the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) and costs. These aspects have been analyzed in the case of the Alderney Race (United Kingdom). The results obtained show that the use of marine current harnessing devices with automated maneuvers has a relatively important economic advantage over those devices designed with the technology that requires manual maneuvers for the installation and operation procedures, thus enabling the cost of energy to be reduced and increasing the profitability of the project.