Funding boosts wave-power technology

Aberdeen-based Green Ocean Energy has received a boost to its wave-power technology following £100,000 of funding from the Scottish Enterprise Seed Fund and £150,000 of private investment.

The funding has been awarded as part of the Scottish Enterprise’s Seed Funding initiative, which provides investments of between £20,000 and £100,000 for start-up and young, growing companies in Scotland.

According to the group, the investment by Scottish Enterprise will significantly improve its Wave Treader device, which has been designed to connect to an offshore wind turbine for the provision of combined wind and wave energy.

The device (pictured below) works by rotating to face into oncoming waves and converting the motion of the wave into electricity. This electricity is then fed back to the shore through the offshore windfarm’s existing cable network.

Strathclyde University has tested a 1:12.5 ratio scale prototype of Wave Treader. Initial results suggest a peak power rating of 500kW, however, the group expects this to increase following additional optimisation and design improvements.