A MULTI-million pound cross-border research centre at Queen’s University, backed principally by European money, has opened bearing the name of the late Professor Ian Bryden, a leading expert in marine renewable energy, who had a 30-year research career in fields associated with energy and hydrodynamics.
The €9.7 million (£8.6m) Bryden Centre for Advanced Marine and Bio-Energy Research will recruit 34 PhD students across the marine and bio-energy disciplines.
This research includes the use of tidal power at Strangford Lough and the North Antrim coast, ocean energy sites in western Scotland, as well as the potential for wave and tidal power generation in Donegal.
The abundance of natural energy resources, value in organic waste and opportunities for the circular economy in the inter-regional area have also driven the focus of the bio-energy research, and it is seen as increasing the potential for Scotland and Ireland to become global leaders in marine renewable energy.
The centre has been funded by the EU’s Interreg Programme, managed by the SEUPB, and is matched by the Department for the Economy in and the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation in Ireland.
Professor James McElnay, acting Vice-Chancellor at Queen’s, said: “The role of the centre is to produce vital cross-border research, something we are already renowned for.
"This partnership will continue to build and expand our expertise and help to develop the next generation of leaders in renewable energy research and education.”
Gina McIntyre, chief executive of the SEUPB, said: “The project will positively address the low level of high-value sectors of research and innovation within this cross-border region, by creating invaluable industry-relevant research into bio-energy and marine-based renewable energy sources.
"Bringing together, for the first time, a number of partners on a cross-border basis across Northern Ireland, Ireland and Western Scotland, who have the capacity to deliver high quality research and so create a strong economic impact in the future in this region.
“The project also aligns with the EU’s Energy 2020 agenda, specifically the renewable energy directive which requires that all 28 member states meet at least 20 per cent of their total energy needs with renewables by then.”
