Radar satellite image of wind farms in Liverpool Bay, captured by the European Union’s Copernicus Sentenil-1 satellite.
TechWorks Marine, a Dún Laoghaire-based marine data company, announces the commencement of a €475,000 contract with the European Space Agency (ESA) to expand the use of satellite data and products in the renewable wind energy sector in Europe.
Further to Irish wind energy supplying a record 43% of all electricity in Ireland in March,* TechWorks Marine are leading a project to establish the current information needs and best practices for the use of satellite earth observation products in the wind energy sector. As one of Ireland’s leading innovators in earth observation products, TechWorks Marine will work to engage a critical mass of key stakeholders to build agreement on the way earth observation-derived information products can be used in the wind industry business processes. The project, strategically important to both Ireland and Europe, will result in the development of a best practices guide for companies to identify suitable sites for new wind farms, to obtain a deeper scientific understanding of the site conditions, and to enable accurate environmental compliance and monitoring activities. Operational services already available to companies in this sector include sea turbidity data from Europe’s Sentinel-2 and Sentinel-3 satellites, and offshore wind speed analysis from the Sentinel-1 satellite.
Commenting on the project launch, Charlotte O’Kelly, Managing Director of TechWorks Marine explained, “we have been working commercially in the renewables sector since 2009, and strategically in offshore wind since 2019 providing Metocean surveys to clients. We see a huge value in using satellite data to assist in both on and offshore site development, through the full life cycle of the wind park”.
Ms. O’ Kelly continued, “working with partners on this project will allow us to integrate satellite data into the entire wind energy infrastructure cycle. Two areas where we are particularly excited about using satellite data are the maximisation of the wind farm output, and the life cycle optimisation.”
Recognising TechWorks Marine’s expertise in this area, with the company advocating for increased satellite data usage in diverse projects since 2009, Dr. Zoltan Bartalis, Earth Observation Applications Engineer at the European Space Agency said “at ESA we are interested in consolidating the usage of satellite-based Earth Observation information and creating best practices for wind energy applications. This promotes collaboration, knowledge sharing, standardisation, and innovation, ultimately leading to more effective and sustainable solutions for the industry.”
“For this, it is indispensable to achieve a critical mass of users, and we are pleased to start this activity lead by TechWorks Marine, who have excellent ties to relevant industry and public sector stakeholders in Ireland and in the wider region.”
The timing of the project start coincides with Dublin hosting the Wind Europe Technology Workshop 2024 in early June. The event will host over 450 wind energy experts from across Europe, detailing the latest innovations within the sector and to tackle the challenges of exploiting this crucial resource.
TechWorks Marine is an established player in earth observation and marine data products, having already won eight contracts from the European Space Agency, and is a participant in the €9 million CAMEO (Creating an Architecture for Manipulating Earth Observation data) project funded through the Government of Ireland’s Disruptive Technologies Innovation Fund.
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About the European Space Agency: The European Space Agency (ESA) provides Europe’s gateway to space. ESA is an intergovernmental organisation, created in 1975, with the mission to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space delivers benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world. https://www.esa.int/
About the Copernicus Sentinel Satellites: Copernicus is the Earth observation component of the European Union’s Space programme. It provides accurate, timely and easily accessible information to improve the management of the environment, understand and mitigate the effects of climate change and ensure civil security. ESA has developed a new family of satellites, called Sentinels, specifically for the operational needs of Copernicus. Sentinel-1 is a polar-orbiting, all-weather, day-and-night radar imaging mission for land and ocean services. Sentinel-2 is a polar-orbiting, multispectral high-resolution imaging mission for land monitoring to provide imagery of vegetation, soil and water cover, inland waterways, and coastal areas. Sentinel-2 can also deliver information for emergency services. Sentinel-3 is a multi-instrument mission to measure sea-surface topography, sea- and land-surface temperature, ocean colour and land colour with high-end accuracy and reliability. The mission supports ocean forecasting systems, as well as environmental and climate monitoring. https://www.copernicus.eu/en
For additional queries please contact info@techworks.ie
* https://windenergyireland.com/latest-news/7684-irish-wind-farms-set-new-march-record
