Catching up with Wave Scale: Harnessing untapped energy from ocean waves
Thanks to Wave Scale, Eco Wave Power, a Swedish company founded in Tel Aviv, Israel, was able to further analyse and achieve progress with its first grid-connected project in Gibraltar. In 2016, the wave energy innovation was successfully installed in Gibraltar. The project was a milestone in bringing wave power to a cost-competitive level and commercial scale. Currently, Eco Wave Power is finalising the construction of its second grid-connected wave energy array located in Israel. This is the first time that wave energy will be officially transmitted to the country’s national electric grid. In parallel, the leading onshore/nearshore wave energy technology company is focused on expanding its presence in Europe and bringing the technology across the Atlantic. “Eco Wave Power continues to advance important initiatives, with 2022 being a year thus far of executing new projects, broadening our project pipeline in Europe and penetrating the U.S. market, with new initiatives in the State of California and the State of New Jersey,” commented founder and CEO Inna Braverman. Concession agreements are in place for Porto, Portugal, and Mallorca, Spain. In 2021, Eco Wave Power secured the installation and grid connection permit for the first phase of the Portuguese project. With an installed capacity of 1 MW, “it will be a steppingstone for the industry in the commercialisation of wave energy,” states Braverman. Plans were also announced for a 1 MW project on the island of Halki in Greece. In January 2022, the company entered into a new agreement with the public-private ocean institute AltaSea to deploy the technology at the US port of Los Angeles. According to Braverman, US lawmakers are seeing the benefits and looking to integrate wave energy into renewable energy policies. “Interest is growing, which we believe enables Eco Wave Power to promote new projects faster, enter into new Concession Agreements, and reduce legislation related barriers. As a result, we are increasingly confident in our ability to introduce wave energy as an innovative, exciting and viable renewable energy source.” Totalling all projects until October 2022, Eco Wave Power’s pipeline stands at 327.7 MW. This figure is expected to grow as new markets emerge that have a major interest in implementing wave energy technologies as part of their renewable energy mix.
Keywords
Wave Scale, wave, energy, ocean, sea, electricity, grid