Marine Energy Wales has appointed RPS to provide environmental support for the Marine Energy Test Area (META) project in the Milford Haven Waterway.
META will see the creation of a series of pre-consented, non-grid connected areas suitable for a range of component, sub assembly and marine energy device tests. The £1.9 million project, which is being supported by EU and Welsh Government funds along with the Coastal Communities Fund and the Swansea Bay City Deal, aims to provide early stage device developers with an easy access testing facility to de-risk future deployments and drive down the cost of energy.
RPS will manage the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Habitat Regulation Assessment (HRA) for the project as well as supporting the Marine Energy Wales team to carry out stakeholder engagement activities.
RPS has extensive knowledge of the Milford Haven Waterway through their previous experience of providing consultancy services for commercial projects (e.g. South Hook Liquid Natural Gas (LNG), South Hook Combined Heat and Power (CHP), Pembroke Power Station, SemLogistics), as well as experience advising the Welsh Government on the Marine Renewable Energy Strategic Framework (MRESF). The RPS project team also has experience of advising on the EMEC project in Scotland which will greatly aid in the consenting process of META.
META is one of the pillars of the Pembroke Dock Marine initiative, which is part of the wider Swansea Bay City Deal and aims to develop a world centre for marine energy development, fabrication and testing. As well as supporting META, RPS is also working with the Port of Milford Haven on the redevelopment of Pembroke Port, one of the other pillars of Pembroke Dock Marine, and these synergies will help with the development of both projects.
Find out more about META here.