Sea waves can generate a lot of energy, but it is difficult to extract it. We are talking about clean, constant energy that could be used to eliminate dependence on sources that are destroying the planet.
There is a company in the United States that launched a power generator into the sea several months ago. This is CalWave, a startup that is working on xWave clean energy, and that has presented the results after 10 months with its device at sea.
In total it has been active more than 99 percent of the time off the coast of San Diego, a success within the wave energy sector. They believe that there is much future with the subject:
[…] ocean waves are 20 to 60 times more energy dense, predictable and consistent compared to other forms of renewable energy.
What they do is put in the sea a floating platform anchored to the bottom of the sea. Said platform remains below the sea surface, so that when a wave passes over it, a pressure wave is obtained that causes a movement in relation to the seabed, thus generating energy.
They believe that their device can work efficiently for years underwater thanks to an anti-corrosion and an anti-fouling coating, nothing dangerous for marine life.
When there are adverse conditions, the device turns itself off, thus increasing its life time.
xWave has not yet announced how much power it produces, but they say they will deploy a 100-kilowatt version off the Oregon coast for a two-year trial.
The goal is to implement 1 GW of wave energy systems by 2035, a small value, but an important step in an underexplored sector.
