CorPower Ocean scores funding to advance wave energy tech

CorPower Ocean and OPS Composite Solutions have received close to €500,000 from EEA Grants for a collaborative project looking to boost the performance and slash costs for wave energy technology.

The Portuguese-Swedish wave energy developer CorPower and Norwegian engineering firm OPS Composite Solutions will join forces for the COMPACT (COMposite Pressure cAsing for CosT) project.

The project is said to combine ‘sector leading’ wave energy technology with low-cost composite design and fabrication processes from the offshore industry.

Financial backing comes from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway under the EEA Grants ‘Blue Growth Programme’ – which is committed to stimulating ‘blue economy’ innovation, creating jobs and driving growth for SMEs.

The COMPACT Project aims to boost the performance and slash costs of CorPower’s next generation wave energy converters, which will shortly enter the flagship HiWave-5 demonstration phase northern Portugal.

Miguel Silva, CorPower Portugal Country Manager, said the latest development marks another significant milestone speeding up the process to commercialization.

“The COMPACT project combines CorPower’s world-class WEC design knowledge with OPS’ vast experience in composite pressure vessels for offshore applications. Together we are aiming to develop new technology addressing two common challenges experienced in state-of-the-art wave energy technology – weight and price.

“The process will involve developing, testing, manufacturing and certifying an innovative light-weight pressure casing (cylinder), which is a key component of our WEC system. By making the WEC significantly lighter and using cost-effective materials and production technology, the COMPACT solution aims to increase energy efficiency while decreasing cost of energy”, said Silva.

OPS Composite Solutions General Manager Reidar Anderssen added: “We are proud to be a partner to CorPower in this industry-advancing project. We strongly believe that the combination of OPS’s extensive experience with composite materials, and CorPower’s advanced technology, will bring this project closer to a successful industrial future”.

The COMPACT Project will actively contribute to the Portuguese Industrial Strategy for Ocean Renewable Energies, project developers noted.

Ocean renewable energy has the potential to supply 25% of Portugal’s annual power consumption, while the sector could generate €254 million in investment, €280 million in gross value added, €119 million in trade and 1,500 new jobs by 2020, according to the strategy.