October 17, 2022

AquaWind project merges wind energy and aquaculture

Thanks to the European project AquaWind, whose official presentation took place last week in the Canary Islands Ocean Platform (PLOCAN), the coast of Gran Canaria will witness the development of a first-ever, ground-breaking prototype at the European level that will combine the production of wind energy and the aquaculture production of marine fish on a floating platform, Fish Information & Services reported.

The validation tests of the new prototype will be conducted more than two miles offshore, and they will encourage the integration of two activities onto a single platform to maximise the use of marine space.

Javier Roo, head of R&D projects at the Canarian Agency for Research, Innovation and the Information Society. (ACIISI) and project coordinator, said it is the first floating wind platform in the world that has two wind turbines, was built and installed in Spain, and has attained this level of technological advancement.

He said it will serve as a ground-breaking prototype for creating actual tests of the viability of marine fish production in a combined system.

Other initiatives of a similar nature have been promoted in Europe, but they have only included theoretical investigations and models, or tests using invertebrates and algae (mainly mussels). One of the key innovations of AQUAWIND will be the ability to evaluate in a real environment the combination of the production and use of renewable energy in the aquaculture activity of marine fish. This will include two species of fish with enormous aquacultural interest, such as sea bream, which serves as a model species, and a new species for the diversification of marine aquaculture, such as the Amberjack or yellowtail, which is distinguished by its high value and culinary interest.

The European Executive Agency for Climate, Infrastructure and the Environment has contributed more than EUR 1 million (~US$975,000; EUR 1 = US$0.98) to AquaWind as co-financing, with the remaining 20% coming from the project's partners, of which more than 50% are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This is a good indication of the effort being made in the Canary Islands through the ACIISI to promote projects and activities.

Since the W2Power prototype has been specially designed with innovative materials in its construction and also highlights the implementation of a high level of digitalization for monitoring and controlling both of the anchoring systems, as well as of energy production and aquaculture, giving greater security and autonomy to both activities, a fish farming cage with various innovations will be incorporated into it during the project's execution.

The evaluation of the social effects (creation of new employment opportunities, impact on traditional activities) and environmental effects (combined environmental impact) that could be derived and that allow establishing the corrective measures that are necessary in future commercial projects are two crucial aspects that AquaWind does not leave behind.

-      Fish Information & Services