Mayo company designs floating green energy solution

SOLARMARINE Energy Ltd., an SME based in Co. Mayo, has designed an innovative floating hybrid renewable energy system, which could offer sustainable low carbon solution for Irish coastal communities.

The research and development project was funded by the Marine Institute's 2018 Industry-Led Awards scheme. Under the scheme, the Marine Institute provided €2.4 million in funding for research projects to 12 companies, working in collaboration with five higher education institutions.

For this research project, SolarMarine Energy Ltd. designed a floating solar energy structure to produce green hydrogen.

Green hydrogen is generated using excess renewable energy that can be used as a clean fuel for heating and transport or to store and transport energy. SolarMarine Energy's research indicates that floating solar energy is ideal for island and coastal communities.

Eamon Howlin, CEO of SolarMarine Energy, said: “The floating solar industry is only emerging in Europe having been established in Japan in 2014, and has a projected market value of over $1 billion by 2023. Thanks to our collaborative study in partnership with the Marine Institute and University College Cork, SolarMarine Energy Ltd. are playing an important part in this developing industry.”

Dr. Paul Leahy, Science Foundation Ireland MAREI Centre at University College Cork (UCC), said: “Our collaboration with SolarMarine Energy has been very successful and we would like to continue working with the company on a follow-up demonstrator project. A floating solar array prototype located near UCC's Beaufort Building in Ringaskiddy, Co. Cork, would allow SolarMarine and UCC to capitalise on the design work undertaken under the Marine Institute funded project, and bring the SolarMarine floating solar concept closer to market.”

The final report for the Floating Solar Energy Hybrid Project can be downloaded from the Marine Institute Open Access Repository at https://oar.marine.ie/handle/10793/1662.