Jospa Ocean Solutions
Jospa TUG
Unique wave-powered Tug (no fuel, no emissions, unmanned - no crew costs)
Solutions offer exciting opportunities
We show four such new market solutions here, each offering persuasive benefits. The Jospa Tug is still being optimised; it may prove to be a game-changer where, when and as the logistics permit, it competes with costly, polluting, conventional shipping.
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Jospa ‘s vision
“Sustainably serve people and planet by using our technology to harness ocean waves”
1
Plastic Problem
We are all aware of the awful plastics and fishing gear pollution scattered throughout our oceans. The waste is everywhere but very sparse, so it is essential that solutions sweep large areas, and not require expensive tugs. A completely fresh approach is needed.
2
Off Shore Wind Platform Problem
Floating wind turbine platforms (“FOWTS”) are becoming a huge part of world electricity. Moorings to hold them in place cost up to 2/3rds of the total. Cutting this is very valuable: Jospa offers the solution
3
Water Shortage Problem
There is an abundance of clean water that, moved by sea, would end many droughts. Up to now, transport has been the cost barrier, but no longer.
4
Vessel Rescue Problem
Problems with major cruise ships and oil tankers can cause massive pollution or loss of life. Jospa’s new solution far safety is exciting and attractive to insurers.
The Jospa tug is powered by waves only, with some photovoltaic panels for controls and communications. It is remote-controlled. Its design is repetitive so it has low capital cost (did we forget to point out that operating costs are almost nil?). It is structurally flexible, largely submerged, built with survivability in mind. A completely new concept for hauling loads in the oceans (not for inshore), it is already addressing some niches where its slow speed is an advantage, where fossil-fuelled tugs would be unaffordable, so it opens new marine markets. Here we show four such markets where it offers persuasive benefits.
Learn More”Proof of concept: speed and pull, going forward and backward”
Our main expectation is in the four applications already described. Up to now Plastics Harvesting seems to be an appropriate first solution – but that may change..
No. The shipping market is vast, and any one application or niche tends to be major. Success in even one of them would have major value. And the need is growing. Garbage/pollution actions are at very early days, ocean clean-up is only beginning. Why would there not be ongoing ocean cleaning activity to start to return our oceans to an earlier condition? Reducing foundation and mooring load on offshore floating platforms could unlock many offshore electricity generation sites around the world. Water transport trials have already been conducted based on using expensive conventional tugs, and climate change and population growth will help drive the need. Emergency rescue of vessels, saving lives and potentially appalling pollution, addresses the insurance industry. So, each solution has its own large customer base. A little farther into the future, massive ocean transport of sands, gravels and ores is growing as availability of nearby deposits declines and requires low-cost transport. The extraordinarily low costs may be expected to open and re-open applications that could not considered before now.
The JOSPA TUG is at ‘the end of the beginning’, where the tug action has been observed, the theory has been investigated through modelling simulations to validate it, and proof-of-concept tests were highly successful. Alternate geometries are now being investigated.:
To date. Jospa has tested the first model Mk I at 15m long in the LIR tanks at the National Ocean Testing Facility Centre in Cork, Ireland. Its Director Dr J. Murphy states “This Technology has already been tested in the LIR NOTF and the positive results from these tests justify its progression to larger scale deployment in open ocean sites”. Further tests of different arrangements are being scheduled through 2021