Marine Energy

WEDUSEA wave energy project gets EU approval to proceed

Next, the WEDUSEA project will demonstrate a grid-connected 1 MW OE35 floating wave energy converter at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) wave energy test site at Billia Croo in Orkney, Scotland.
WEDUSEA wave energy project gets EU approval to proceed
(Credit: WEDUSEA)

A €19.6 million ($21.6 million) wave energy project, which aims to be a stepping stone toward large scale wave energy commercialization, has received formal approval from the European Union (EU).

The WEDUSEA project is a collaboration between 14 partners, spanning industry and academia from across the UK, Ireland, France, Germany and Spain. It is coordinated by the Irish company OceanEnergy and was co-funded by the EU Horizon Europe Program and by Innovate UK, the UK’s innovation agency.

Next, the WEDUSEA project will demonstrate a grid connected 1 MW OE35 floating wave energy converter at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) wave energy test site at Billia Croo in Orkney, Scotland. A technical and environmental demonstration will happen over a two-year period in Atlantic wave conditions.

OceanEnergy developed the OE35, which it calls the “world’s largest” capacity floating wave energy device. Floating on the ocean’s surface, the device incorporates a trapped air volume, with the lower part open to the sea. Wave pressures at the submerged opening cause the water to oscillate and drive the trapped air through a turbine to generate electricity. Electricity generated will be exported to the UK grid via EMEC’s subsea cables.

“Wave energy is the world’s most valuable renewable resource with around 30TWh of potential annual production waiting to be harnessed,” said Prof Tony Lewis, chief technical officer at OceanEnergy. “That’s almost ten times Europe’s annual electricity consumption. However, this potential has yet to be fully realized. The project will demonstrate that wave technology is on a cost reduction trajectory and will thus be a stepping stone to larger commercial array scale up and further industrialization. We predict that the natural energy of the world’s oceans will one day supply much of the grid.”

The WEDUSEA project has three phases. The first phase is the initial design and build of a device suited to the ocean conditions at EMEC’s Billia Croo wave energy test site. This will be followed by the demonstration at the site, lasting two years. The final phase will be commercialization and dissemination.

The wave converter build starts in the second half of 2024 and the demonstration at EMEC is expected to begin in June 2025.