The clear skies over some of world鈥檚 usually smog hit cities and the general fall in air pollution has been one of the few positives to come from the coronavirus crisis.
While this is only a temporary reprieve until the pandemic eases it has put the environment and renewables back into sharp focus.
This could be good news for Anglesey, which while geographically on the west of the 海角视频 could be at the heart of Wales鈥檚 tidal strategy.
The north west coast of Anglesey has been identified for its powerful tidal resource.
It's what attracted Swedish renewables firm Minesto to the 鈥楨nergy Island鈥 to develop its first utility-scale tidal project.
Now companies around the globe are signing up for Morlais - the marine energy 鈥楧emonstration Zone鈥 being coordinated by enterprise agency Menter Mon.
State of the art support facilities, such as Menai Science Park (M-SParc) on Anglesey, are emerging as part of the mix, supporting the marine energy sector.
Pryderi ap Rhisiart, managing director at M-SParc, said: 鈥淎t a time when the sustainability of the very world in which we live has become the focus of our daily conversations it has become even more apparent that we need power to keep us going. We鈥檝e seen clear skies and waters in some of world鈥檚 most polluted cities and wildlife returning to habitats that had become uninhabitable.
鈥淭here鈥檚 never been more evidence that sustainable energy is not just 鈥榥ice to have鈥, it鈥檚 a necessity.
鈥淲ales, and Anglesey in particular, can play a key role in meeting this need 鈥 with well-developed marine energy partnerships and projects in the pipeline gearing up to generate clean, low carbon electricity. And with this as a backdrop,
鈥淭he north west coast of Anglesey has long been identified for its powerful tidal resource. In this respect, the area was designated by the Crown Estate in 2013 as a marine energy 鈥楧emonstration Zone鈥.
鈥淭he zone is one of several around the United Kingdom which have been allocated by the Crown Estate in a bid to encourage and accelerate the development of marine energy.
鈥淓ach of the zones have been identified for their wave and tidal energy potential as well as access to appropriate infrastructure. The Anglesey zone was selected for its strong tidal resource, its grid connection, and its proximity to the port of Holyhead.
鈥淭he designation has been the catalyst for several projects and initiatives 鈥 putting the region firmly on the map in terms of tidal energy, as well as reinforcing Anglesey鈥檚 well established 鈥楨nergy Island鈥 vision.鈥
Through Morlais, Menter M么n will sub-let areas within the zone to developers of tidal stream technology. Subject to receiving Welsh Government consent, the project has the potential to scale up over time to a 240MW generating capacity. Ten 海角视频 and international developers of tidal devices have already signed up and are ready to deploy their technology on a commercial scale at the zone.
A few miles up the coast, Swedish firm Minesto is developing the first low-velocity tidal energy project in the world. With its 海角视频 head office at Holyhead, Minesto has already started to deploy its Deep Green technology at the site.
Following successful deployment and testing the aim is to install further devices and gradually expand the site to a commercial demonstration array of up to聽10MW installed capacity.
Minesto and Morlais are collaborating to develop grid and cable infrastructure for the proposed developments to reduce costs and minimise the environmental footprint.
Pryderi added: 鈥淭hese projects are of course just the visible front end of the sector here in north Wales.
鈥淭o ensure projects such as these reach their full potential and deliver real benefits for the area, both require a supply chain and network of supporting industries and facilities.
鈥淢-SParc, located in Gaerwen in the centre of Anglesey, is playing a key role in this by co-ordinating and promoting the growth of the sector locally. A Bangor University company, M-SParc has provided a home to businesses engaged with the marine energy industry since it first opened its doors in March 2018.
鈥淭wo years on, it has become a hub for the sector; hosting events to showcase supply opportunities, providing business support as well as state of the art facilities and space for businesses to grow.
鈥淒eveloping a supply chain with the skills and capacity to service the tidal energy sector in general is critical to ensuring that Wales is best placed to take advantage of this emerging industry.
鈥淐ompanies based at M-SParc already involved in marine energy span a wide range of competences and expertise.鈥
Among them is Animated Technologies who provide marketing solutions in the form of explainer videos.
Others include Papertrail specialising in documenting health and safety compliance and accountability for the marine industry; Pennant Flower Surveyor which works with off-shore energy developments, and renewable energy start-up Trydan M么n.
Pryderi said: 鈥淲ith this and world-renowned expertise on the doorstep at Bangor University Marine Sciences department and SEACAMS centre 鈥 Anglesey and North Wales have the right ingredients and ambition to innovate and become at the fore of the marine energy sector.鈥
