>> Sreenivasan: LAST NIGHT WE

TOOK YOU TO THE LARGEST PLANNED

TIDAL ENERGY PROJECT IN THE

WORLD, HARNESSING THE POWER IN

THE FAST MOVING WATERS OFF THE

NORTHERN COAST OF SCOTLAND.

BUT SCOTLAND IS A PART OF THE

UNITED KINGDOM, AND IT NOW FACES

THE COMING SEPARATION OF THE

U.K. FROM THE EUROPEAN UNION-

I'M TALKING ABOUT BREXIT.

WILL SCOTLAND BE ABLE TO

CONTINUE TURNING MARINE ENERGY

FROM AN INTRIGUING CONCEPT TO

COMMERCIAL REALITY?

HERE'S PART TWO OF OUR REPORT.

ON A BRISK NOVEMBER MORNING, I

HEADED INTO THE WATERS AROUND

THE ORKNEY ISLANDS, AN

ARCHIPELAGO OFF THE COAST OF

NORTHERN SCOTLAND.

I'M WITH A TEAM FROM THE

EUROPEAN MARINE ENERGY CENTER OR

EMEC, A RESEARCH AND TESTING

FACILITY THAT'S BASED HERE.

I'M ALSO WITH A SPANISH

RENEWABLE ENERGY COMPANY THAT'S

TESTING ITS NEW PROJECT HERE IN

ORKNEY.

THIS DEVICE GENERATES POWER FROM

THE TIDES.

>> WE HAVE ALREADY PRODUCED

ENERGY WITH THIS PLATFORM.

>> Sreenivasan: PABLO MANSILLA

IS A PROJECT MANAGER WITH

MAGALLANES RENOVABLES, THE

COMPANY THAT DEVELOPED THIS

DEVICE.

HE TOOK ME ABOARD TO GET A

CLOSER LOOK.

WHY COME HERE?

>> WE ARE COMING HERE BECAUSE

THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PLACE

TO TEST THIS ENERGY.

>> Sreenivasan: THE FLOATING

DECK IS ABOUT 150 FEET LONG AND

WHEN IT IS IN PLACE IT WILL BE

TETHERED TO THE SEAFLOOR WITH

CHAINS.

THE TIDES RUSH THROUGH TWO GIANT

UNDERWATER TURBINES BENEATH THE

DECK AND GENERATE ENERGY.

THE DEVICE WAS TOWED MORE THAN

1,300 MILES FROM SPAIN AND SOON

WILL BE CONNECTED TO THE GRID AT

EMEC'S TEST SITE IN ORKNEY FOR A

YEAR.

>> WE WANT TO VALIDATE THIS

TECHNOLOGY, TO OPTIMIZE OUR

PLATFORM AND TRY TO REACH TO THE

COMMERCIAL POINT AND START

SELLING PLATFORMS.

>> Sreenivasan: MANSILLA TOOK ME

INSIDE, WHERE ELECTRICAL

CONVERTERS TRANSFORM THE POWER

GENERATED FROM THE TIDES TO A

STANDARD VOLTAGE BEFORE SENDING

IT TO THE POWER GRID ON SHORE.

WHEN IT'S OPERATING THERE WON'T

BE ANYONE ONBOARD; IT CAN ALL BE

MONITORED AND CONTROLLED

REMOTELY FROM ANYWHERE.

>> THIS IS OUR CONTROL SYSTEM,

WE CAN CHECK EVERYTHING FROM

SPAIN.

>> Sreenivasan: SO 24/7 THIS IS

ALL SENDING INFORMATION IN REAL

TIME?

>> YEAH, YES.

>> Sreenivasan: EMEC HAS TESTED

MORE THAN 30 OCEAN ENERGY

DEVICES, INCLUDING THIS ONE,

WHICH RECENTLY GENERATED ENOUGH

ENERGY FOR ABOUT 830 HOMES IN A

YEAR-LONG TEST.

MANUFACTURED BY A SCOTTISH TIDAL

ENERGY DEVELOPER, IT LOOKS LIKE

ITS MOVING, BUT REALLY IT'S JUST

THE TIDES RUSHING BY.

LIKE THE MAGALLANES DEVICE, IT'S

TETHERED TO STAY IN PLACE, WHILE

TURBINES UNDERNEATH GATHER

ENERGY FROM THE MOVING WATER.

LISA MACKENZIE IS EMEC'S

MARKETING MANAGER.

SHE SAYS THAT IN ADDITION TO

HAVING A TESTING SITE FOR

DEVICES THAT CREATE POWER FROM

TIDES, EMEC ALSO HAS A SITE TO

TEST WAVE ENERGY.

>> ORKNEY IS VERY UNIQUE BECAUSE

IT HAS BOTH OF THESE RESOURCES

VERY CLOSE TOGETHER.

>> Sreenivasan: HERE AT BILLIA

CROO, WAVES HAVE BEEN MEASURED

AT NEARLY 60 FEET HIGH.

MORE THAN A MILE OFFSHORE, A

FINNISH COMPANY IS TESTING A

DEVICE THAT CAPTURES ENERGY FROM

THE MOVEMENT OF THESE WAVES.

IT THEN FEEDS THAT ENERGY VIA

UNDERWATER CABLE BACK INTO THE

NATIONAL GRID.

>> IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO DO

THE COMPUTER MODELING AND TO DO

THE TANK TESTING AND GET A LOT

OF THE ISSUES IRONED OUT AS MUCH

AS POSSIBLE AT SCALE.

BUT YOU CAN NOT UNDERSTAND HOW A

TECHNOLOGY IS GOING TO INTERACT

IN THE REAL SEA ENVIRONMENT AT

FULL SCALE UNTIL IT HAS BEEN

DEPLOYED.

>> Sreenivasan: EMEC, WHICH IS A

NONPROFIT, WAS ESTABLISHED IN

2003 AND HAS RECEIVED ABOUT $44

MILLION IN PUBLIC FUNDING,

INCLUDING FROM THE EUROPEAN

UNION AND THE U.K. AND SCOTTISH

GOVERNMENTS.

IT HAS BEEN SELF-SUFFICIENT

SINCE 2011, WITH COMPANIES

PAYING TO USE ITS FACILITIES.

BUT IT STILL DOES RECEIVE E.U.

GRANT-FUNDED PROJECTS.

IN FACT, THE COST OF MAGALLANES'

YEAR-LONG TEST AT EMEC IS BEING

SUBSIDIZED BY E.U. FUNDING.

SO, WHILE TIDES AND WAVES HERE

MAY BE STRONG AND CERTAIN, THE

POLITICAL WINDS ARE ANYTHING

BUT.

THE UNITED KINGDOM'S BREXIT IS

SET FOR MARCH, AFTER WHICH

SCOTLAND WILL NO LONGER BE PART

OF THE E.U.

AND THE FATE OF E.U. FUNDED

PROJECTS IN BRITAIN IS

UNCERTAIN.

I MEAN, YOU'RE A EUROPEAN FUNDED

AGENCY IN THE FIRST PLACE.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT YEAR?

>> SO, WE'RE CALLED THE EUROPEAN

MARINE ENERGY CENTER, BUT WE SEE

OURSELVES AS VERY MUCH A GLOBAL

COMPANY.

AND WHATEVER HAPPENS WITH

BREXIT, AND AT THE MOMENT WE

DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT WILL BE,

THAT'S NOT GOING TO STOP US

WORKING WITH EUROPEAN AND GLOBAL

COMPANIES.

>> Sreenivasan: PAUL WHEELHOUSE

IS THE SCOTTISH MINISTER FOR

ENERGY, CONNECTIVITY, AND THE

ISLANDS AND A MEMBER OF THE

RULING SCOTTISH NATIONAL PARTY,

WHICH DID NOT SUPPORT BREXIT.

>> WE ARE, REGARDLESS OF PERHAPS

SOME OF THE BREXITEERS VIEWS ON

THIS.

WE WILL ALWAYS BE PART OF THE

EUROPEAN CONTINENT.

GEOGRAPHY DOESN'T CHANGE AND WE

HAVE A HUGE SHARE OF EUROPE'S

WAVE ENERGY, TIDAL ENERGY AND

OFFSHORE WIND AND ONSHORE WIND

POTENTIAL.

>> Sreenivasan: WE SPOKE WITH

WHEELHOUSE AT A RECENT

CONFERENCE ON OCEAN ENERGY IN

EDINBURGH.

AS BREXIT APPROACHES, HE WARNS

THE U.K. SHOULD NOT REPEAT THE

MISTAKE THAT IT MADE IN THE

1980s WITH WIND ENERGY.

>> THE INDUSTRY WAS BEING LED BY

ACADEMIA IN SCOTLAND AND THE

REST OF U.K. AND INDEED THE

FIRST THING SOME OF THE FIRST

ONSHORE TURBINES IN THE WORLD

WERE TRIALED IN ORKNEY AND THEN

WE DROPPED THE BALL BECAUSE IT

WAS A DASH FOR GAS AND IT WAS

MORE POLITICALLY EXPEDIENT TO

PUSH FOR A SHORT TERM HIT AND

AGENDA AND NEGLECTED THE LONG

TERM DEVELOPMENT OF A TECHNOLOGY

THAT HAD HUGE POTENTIAL.

>> Sreenivasan: TODAY, THE WIND

ENERGY INDUSTRY IS DOMINATED BY

DANISH, CHINESE, GERMAN, AND

SPANISH COMPANIES.

>> SO WE'RE SAYING TO THE U.K.

GOVERNMENT PLEASE DESPERATELY DO

NOT DROP THE BALL AGAIN.

>> Sreenivasan: AND EMEC IN

ORKNEY IS NOT THE ONLY

INVESTMENT THE SCOTTISH AND U.K.

GOVERNMENTS HAVE MADE IN

DEVELOPING THE ECOSYSTEM AROUND

MARINE ENERGY.

DAVID INGRAM IS A ENGINEERING

PROFESSOR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF

EDINBURGH, AND THE DIRECTOR OF

THE FLOWAVE OCEAN ENERGY

RESEARCH FACILITY.

THIS 634,000 GALLON TANK WAS

FUNDED IN PART BY THE U.K.

GOVERNMENT AND OPENED IN 2014.

IT'S A PLACE WHERE YOU CAN RENT

A STORMY SEA.

PICK THE SIZE OF THE WAVE OR

FORCE OF THE TIDE AND TEST

WHATEVER YOU LIKE.

>> SO IF I WANT TO HAVE A 200

YEAR STORM, I CAN HAVE 200 YEAR

STORM CONDITIONS EVERY 15

MINUTES.

IF I GO TO THE OCEAN AND I WANT

A 200 YEAR STORM I MIGHT HAVE TO

WAIT 300 YEARS FOR THAT 200 YEAR

STORM TO COME ALONG.

>> Sreenivasan: ON THE DAY WE

VISITED, THIS SMALL SCALE

VERSION OF A WAVE POWER DEVICE

WAS BEING PUT THROUGH THE

EQUIVALENT OF MASSIVE SWELLS BY

A SWEDISH COMPANY.

>> IT'S MUCH CHEAPER FOR YOU TO

BRING A MODEL HERE FROM

AUSTRALIA AND TEST IT OR FROM

SWEDEN AND TEST IT THAN IT IS

TO, TO REPLICATE THIS FACILITY.

>> Sreenivasan: INGRAM SAYS

RESEARCH LIKE THIS AROUND

EMERGING TECHNOLOGY IS ONLY

POSSIBLE WITH GOVERNMENT

ASSISTANCE.

>> YOU GET TO THE POINT WHERE

THERE NEEDS TO BE NATIONAL

SUPPORT FOR SOMETHING TO HAPPEN

AT A LARGE SCALE, AND IF THE

GOVERNMENT DON'T WANT TO PROVIDE

THAT SUPPORT THEN THAT

TECHNOLOGY GOES TO SOMEWHERE

WHERE IT CAN, WHERE THE SUPPORT

CAN BE FOUND.

>> Sreenivasan: ADDING TO THE

UNCERTAINTY AROUND BREXIT,

SCOTLAND IS NOT THE ONLY

GOVERNMENT RACING TO DEVELOP

THESE NEW TECHNOLOGIES.

REPRESENTATIVES FROM ALL OVER

EUROPE WERE AT THE MARINE ENERGY

CONFERENCE IN EDINBURGH.

AND THE UNITED STATES WAS

REPRESENTED AS WELL.

TIM RAMSEY IS THE PROGRAM

MANAGER FOR THE U.S. DEPARTMENT

OF ENERGY'S MARINE AND

HYDROKINETIC PROGRAM.

>> WE'RE LEARNING AS MUCH AS WE

CAN FROM, FROM OUR COUNTERPARTS

OVER HERE IN THE U.K.

>> Sreenivasan: RAMSEY'S OFFICE

DISTRIBUTES ABOUT $70 MILLION

DOLLARS A YEAR IN GRANTS FOR

MARINE ENERGY, WITH U.S.

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY SUPPORT,

TIDAL DEVICES HAVE ALREADY BEEN

TESTED IN MAINE AND NEW YORK.

THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY IS ALSO

HELPING BUILD A 50 MILLION

DOLLAR WAVE TESTING SITE ON THE

COAST OF OREGON.

MODELED ON FACILITIES LIKE EMEC,

IT WILL BE ABLE TO TEST UTILITY-

SCALE DEVICES.

RAMSEY THINKS AMERICAN COMPANIES

STILL HAVE A CHANCE TO CATCH UP

TO THE EUROPEANS.

>> WE'RE NOT AS FAR ALONG AS

THEM, BUT THEY'RE NOT THAT FAR

OUT IN FRONT OF US.

WE CAN STILL CATCH AND THEN WE

CAN STILL BE THE WORLD LEADERS

IN THIS SPACE WHEN YOU LOOK

ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND THE

RESOURCES THAT WE DO HAVE IT

SPANS THEM ALL.

WE HAVE A GREAT TIDAL RESOURCE,

A GREAT WAVE RESOURCE, WE HAVE

THE SUPPLY CHAIN, I THINK WE'D

BE MISSING OUT ON A BIG

OPPORTUNITY IF WE DON'T TAKE

ADVANTAGE OF THAT.

>> Sreenivasan: BUT DESPITE THE

INVESTMENT THERE ARE STILL

QUESTIONS AS TO WHETHER OR NOT

DEVELOPING TECHNOLOGIES, LIKE

TIDAL ENERGY, CAN COMPETE WITH

EXISTING FOSSIL FUELS AND MORE

ESTABLISHED RENEWABLE ENERGY

TECHNOLOGIES LIKE WIND AND

SOLAR.

TIM CORNELIUS IS THE C.E.O. OF

SIMEC ATLANTIS ENERGY, WHICH IS

DEVELOPING THE MEYGEN PROJECT,

THE LARGEST PLANNED TIDAL ARRAY

IN THE WORLD IN NORTHERN

SCOTLAND.

>> TIDAL POWER IS WHERE WIND AND

SOLAR WAS 15 YEARS AGO.

THE WORLD'S BEST RESOURCES

CLOSEST TO DISTRIBUTION POINTS

ARE YET TO BE DEVELOPED.

>> Sreenivasan: CORNELIUS HOPES

THAT PROJECTS LIKE MEYGEN WILL

PROVE THAT COMMERCIAL SCALE

TIDAL ENERGY IS FEASIBLE.

AS THE SUN SETS AND THE MOON

PULLS THESE TIDES TO RUSH BY AT

11 MILES PER HOUR SPINNING

UNDERWATER TURBINES ARE HELPING

KEEP THE LIGHTS ON.