New Energy Takes The Waters

Is wave energy the most reliable renewable? Energy from tides and waves could satisfy the world’s power needs, yet harnessing it on a commercial scale remains a dilemma for many of the tech startups in the space

Oliver Balch, February 12, 2019 (Raconteur)

“…In an era of rapid anthropogenic climate change, the race is on to find alternatives to oil, gas and other energy-dense hydrocarbons…With per-kilowatt prices dropping by the day, solar and wind power look like an increasingly viable bet..[but they are variable. Tidal and wave energies are more consistent and powerful. The question] is whether these natural assets can be effectively and efficiently harnessed…[A recent report] forecasts revenues from tidal and wave energy are set to rise more than tenfold over the next five years…

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…[Marine energy] is flush with startups, all with promising technologies…[But wave energy, tidal energy, ocean and fresh water current energy, and temperature differentiation energies all] face the same tricky combination of high capital costs, limited site availability, technological uncertainty and possible environmental impacts…Now the nascent sector is encountering perhaps its biggest challenge…The falling costs of offshore wind makes it very difficult for tidal and wave energy of all types to be price competitive…[But, given its huge potential, the marine] energy industry has good reason to remain committed…” click here for more

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