Gibraltar wave power project surfs up possibilities across Europe

From the storm-lashed coasts of northern Scotland to Europe’s southern tip, the continent’s shores are forever pounded by waves rolling in from the North Atlantic. Yet, while these waves might seem to provide an obvious bounty for environmentally friendly electricity generation, wave power has been slow to take off.
Now with the launch of Eco Wave Power’s (EWP) energy project in Gibraltar – the first such grid-connected plant and the only wave energy plant in Europe operating multiple units under commercial power purchase agreement (PPA) terms – things could finally be about to change. The technology has been under development by the Tel Aviv-based company since 2011 when a testbed was installed in Ukraine and a pilot plant subsequently built in Israel’s Jaffa Port.

Meeting Gibraltar’s energy demand

Then in 2014, EWP signed a PPA with Gibraltar for delivery of a 5MW ocean power plant. Phased construction of the Gibraltar plant, located at the Ammunition Jetty, began last year and it is already exporting electricity into the power grid. The system is currently composed of eight ocean energy converter units that supply 100kW, but when completed, with the help of an EU grant, the array will produce 5MW. It is then expected to meet 15% of Gibraltar’s electricity demand. Although currently still in the design phase, the additional units will be much larger than the existing ones.
Power is supplied through the movement of floaters, which drive the hydro motor and a generator. This is then delivered to the shore via a subsea cable. The system allows for data to be transmitted back to shore in real-time and also provides a smart automation system that controls the power station’s storm-protection mechanism. It is this innovation that is the key to ensuring a stable transmission of electricity to the grid.
EWP business development director Eyal Gibstein says that, in the event of upcoming storms the system can independently “decide” whether to raise the buoys over the water level or submerse them into the ocean in order to protect the system from mechanical failure. When the wave heights return to normal, the system unlocks and recommences energy conversion and transmission of the electrical power ashore.
 

A unique wave technology

This EWP technology is different to other wave-power systems due to what the company describes as the tailored shape of its floats. These floats can shift their orientation as needed, relative to incoming waves, allowing for more motion to be drawn out of the wave. Another unique selling point is the system’s advanced anti-corrosion protection.
EWP says it expects its coatings, in combination with its arrangement of cathodes, to provide its technology with a lifespan of at least 30 years and up. The company is still developing the system but envisages future large–scale, commercial-size sea wave-power plants being built with up to 100 floats.
“Planning and design works has begun on Eco Wave Power’s next generation of 1MW to 5MW power plant, by using larger units aiming to deliver around ten times the capacity of Eco Wave Power’s current units in Gibraltar, and improving its efficiency”, say EWP co-founders David Leb and Inna Braverman. The company, which has subsidiaries in Mexico, China and Gibraltar, is gearing up for 111MW worth of projects worldwide. . EWP says that its prices are competitive “not only with other ocean energy devices, but also with wind, solar, hydro and even traditional methods for electricity production such as oil, coal, gas and others”.