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CorPower sees California’s offshore wind ambition as opportunity for wave energy
California’s continued push to rapidly adopt offshore wind signals a glowing opportunity for wave energy technology as a complementary power partner to accelerate the mission to net-zero, according to Swedish company CorPower Ocean.
Decarbonization A recent report by the World Economic Forum highlighted the fast-evolving narrative on the U.S. West Coast, following a series of major announcements in 2021. Earlier in May, the Biden administration revealed offshore wind farm leases would start to be auctioned off in 2022, unleashing space for development across than Californian Pacific. Shortly after, in September, Sacramento lawmakers passed a bill requiring the transition to offshore wind by 2023.
It is understood that up to 60% of the state’s electricity consumption could be powered via offshore wind by 2030, with view of reaching a complete wind-powered grid by 2045, according to CorPower. However, the mission to net-zero could be accelerated if California is able to further diversify its green energy mix, tapping more energy from the ocean, through combined floating wind, solar and wave energy arrays, the Swedish wave energy company argues.
With commercial-scale wave energy devices now being tested, the technology is on track for commercialisation in the coming years, offering huge benefits to coastal communities experiencing strong wave activity, according to the company. For California, which is already doubling down and laying foundations for mega-scale offshore wind developments, subsea infrastructure will already be installed, easing the future deployment of ‘bolt-on’ wave clusters.
