DURABLE has a budget of € 3.9M and it is financed by the Interreg Atlantic Area Program. The project launch meeting takes place today in Bidart (France). Alerion Technologies, Lortek S. Coop and The Basque Energy Cluster are the Basque partners of this project, which brings together a total of 10 European partners. The 5 participating countries are France, Ireland, Portugal, Spain and United Kingdom.

The launch meeting of the European Project DURABLE was held on April 12 in Bidart (France), with the objective of promoting the development of renewable energies in the Atlantic Area (France, Ireland, Portugal, Spain and United Kingdom). The Project has a budget of €3.9M and it is co-financed by the Interreg Atlantic Area Program through the European Regional Development Fund.

The Project

Specifically, the goal of DURABLE is to accelerate the performance of renewable energies through the validation and demonstration of aerospace technologies applied in robotics for operation and maintenance activities of wind and solar energy systems. The application of this technology will automate inspection and repair tasks, reducing costs and favoring production.

This project is led by the Ecole Supérieure des Technologies Industrielles Avancées (ESTIA) of France and it has an important Basque presence, since it includes three Basque partners: Alerion Technologies, Lortek S. Coop. and the Basque Energy Cluster.

The full name of the project is 'Drones and maintenance robots for the promotion of renewable energies in the Atlantic area'. For the first time, this project will apply disruptive aerospace, robotic, non-destructive inspection and additive manufacturing technologies to solve the current challenges in the operation and maintenance of wind and solar energy parks.

The project plans to map the available technologies and the needs in the operation and maintenance of solar and wind energy parks, to adapt them afterward. DURABLE will conclude with the realization of a model and a test of the solution in a pilot project.

Project justification

The common challenge addressed by DURABLE in the Interreg Atlantic Area framework is the need to change the current paradigm of the renewable energy sector through the transformation of the technological, institutional, industrial and social framework in the Atlantic area.

In fact, the Atlantic region is below the average of the European Union (EU) in the consumption of energy from renewable sources. Countries need to update their renewable energy production technologies to overcome these challenges.

10 partners from 5 Atlantic countries

The DURABLE project is formed by a consortium that brings together 10 partners from the 5 Atlantic countries divided into: 7 technological centers / universities, 2 clusters and 1 industrial partner. In addition, other 6 associated entities participate through an Advisory Board.

The project partners are as follows:

Technological centers / universities
• Ecole Supérieure des Technologies Industrielles Avancées (ESTIA) - France (líder)
• Centro Avanzado de Tecnologías Aeroespaciales (CATEC) - Spain
• Dublin City University - Ireland
• Instituto Superior Técnico - Portugal
• Lortek S. Coop - Spain
• Universidad de Sevilla - Spain
• University of the West of England, Bristol - United Kingdom

Clusters
• Clúster Vasco de Energía - Spain
• Corporación Tecnológica de Andalucía (CTA) -Spain

Industrial partners
• Alerion Technologies - Spain

Advisory Board
• Abengoa Energía - Spain
• Cluster Drones AETOS - France
• Altran - France
• Drona`tech - France
• Agencia IDEA - Spain
• Sociedad para la Transformación Competitiva (SPRI) - Spain


About Basque Energy Cluster
The Energy Cluster integrates the main companies in the value chain of the energy sector in the Basque Country (energy operators, equipment and component manufacturers, engineering and service companies), agents of the Basque Science, Technology and Innovation Network and public administration bodies with responsibilities in the field of energy. It currently has 177 associates and develops numerous activities in the fields of internationalization, technological development and business innovation.