Wave Energy Companies Striving to Catch Up With Offshore Wind Power

Companies working to harness ocean waves for energy think they can catch up to more advanced offshore wind power in short order. 

"What it took 25 years to do in the wind industry, we want to do in five years," Aquamarine Power Ltd CEO Martin McAdam told Reuters recently.

“By 2014 we will have a commercially available device," McAdam said, setting a target date his company hopes to be competitive with offshore wind turbines.

Privately-owned Aquamarine Power, based in Britain, is already testing its “Oyster” wave energy device in the ocean.  A few other marine power companies are also testing equipment in ocean conditions, where corrosion from saltwater, strong winds and severe weather conditions pose challenges for all marine energy developers.

"The biggest challenge for wave is survivability: how the device is going to survive when you have a very big wave," Aquamarine’s McAdam said.

"Our device is very simple. It has almost no moving parts under water," said McAdam. "That means there are very few parts that can break. It's also easy to manufacture."

Aquamarine has invested over $30 million in the Oyster device, and hopes to raise more funds through private equity and venture capital to fully commercialize the technology, which it expects to cost $75-90 million.

Aquamarine’s Oyster oscillator is designed to send high-pressure water through a pipeline to the shore where conventional hydroelectric generators can convert it into electricity.  The technology is still in the prototype testing stages, but could potentially supply significant power to coastal communities in the future.