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Over the past year, the collaboration between Ocean Energy Europe and Mercator Ocean International has showcased the transformative role of Copernicus Marine Service, Europe’s earth observation program, in advancing the ocean energy sector.

A Collaborative Effort to Drive Renewable Energy Growth

In 2023, Ocean Energy Europe and Mercator Ocean International joined forces to promote the use of Copernicus Marine Service data within the ocean energy sector. The collaboration aimed to bridge the gap between data providers and the industry, highlighting the practical applications of free, high-resolution ocean data in renewable energy development. Through five compelling use cases and an engaging webinar, this partnership has demonstrated how detailed marine data can support cutting-edge energy projects, foster sustainability, and inform policy decisions.

As Europe strives toward its climate and energy goals, including the EU Offshore Renewable Energy Strategy target of 1 GW of ocean energy by the early 2030s, Copernicus Marine Service offers a vital resource. By providing detailed information on ocean conditions such as currents, wave height, and salinity, this service supports decision-making at every stage of project development – from site selection to operations and maintenance.

Showcasing Success: Five Real-World Use Cases

A key milestone of the collaboration was the identification and promotion of five use cases, each illustrating how Copernicus Marine Service data drives innovation and efficiency in ocean energy projects:

1. CorPower Ocean: Identifying global wave energy potential & projecting future energy systems

Using Copernicus Marine Service data, CorPower Ocean identifies global wave energy potential and optimises operations for its pilot projects. By analysing wave height and period, they project power generation and improve maintenance strategies, ensuring cost-effective deployments.

“Copernicus Marine Service data has been invaluable in identifying wave energy potential around the globe. With this data, we’ve been able to project energy outputs, optimise operations, and support the development of sustainable wave energy systems.” – CorPower Ocean

2. Mocean Energy: Optimising wave energy: Copernicus Marine Data for site selection and performance analysis

Mocean Energy leverages Copernicus Marine Service data to create heatmaps and performance analyses for their wave energy converters. These insights inform site selection and operational efficiency, enabling them to tackle the challenges of harsh marine environments.

“Copernicus Marine Service provides us with the reliable data we need to optimise site selection and performance analysis for wave energy. With high-resolution insights, we’re creating tools to tackle the challenges of producing clean energy in the toughest marine environments.” – Mocean Energy

3. MESPAC: Innovative Solutions for Offshore Energy: MESPAC’s AI-Powered Data Enhancement

Combining satellite-derived data with artificial intelligence, MESPAC developed advanced tools to refine metocean data for offshore wind and tidal energy projects. This integration supports efficient operations and promotes sustainable energy solutions.

“By combining Copernicus Marine Service data with artificial intelligence, we’ve created a powerful tool to deliver high-resolution metocean insights for offshore energy. This integration not only accelerates site selection and time-to-installation but also improves operational efficiency and enhances safety and reliability, which are critical for advancing renewable energy projects.” – MESPAC

4. IMDC: The iMED model supporting Ocean Energy in the Mediterranean

IMDC’s high-resolution model of the Mediterranean Sea used Copernicus data to analyse local ocean dynamics. This tool supports renewable energy design, climate change monitoring, and marine conservation, aligning with the EU Renewable Energy Directive.

“The Copernicus Marine Service data is an essential foundation for the iMED model, allowing us to capture the intricate dynamics of the Mediterranean Sea with unparalleled accuracy. This data enables us to support offshore renewable energy, protect marine ecosystems, and enhance maritime safety – all while addressing the challenges posed by climate change.” – IMDC

5. Minesto: Harnessing predictable tidal energy in the Faroe Islands

Minesto uses Copernicus Marine Service data to optimise the development of their tidal kite pilot farm. By identifying the best deployment sites and understanding local tidal conditions, Minesto supports the Faroe Islands’ transition to a zero-emissions electricity grid.

“Copernicus Marine Service data is a cornerstone for developing sites for our tidal farms worldwide. By providing detailed insights into ocean currents, tidal patterns and other oceanographic data, it helps us identify the best deployment sites, optimise operations, and bring predictable tidal energy to the grid. This is vital for supporting the journey to a zero-emissions future.” – Minesto

These examples illustrate the diversity of applications and the tangible benefits of using Copernicus Marine Service data, from energy system optimisation to environmental protection.

A Broader Impact Across the Ocean Energy Sector

While the five use cases showcase specific successes, they represent just a fraction of the potential applications for Copernicus Marine Service data. Thanks to ongoing promotion efforts, many other ocean energy companies have started using Copernicus Marine Service data for their projects. According to latest information, over 50% of OEE membership is currently using it. This level of penetration is very high, showing the success of the past collaboration programmes. Several of these companies have even expressed interest in becoming featured use cases, underscoring the growing recognition of the service’s value.

The ripple effect of this collaboration extends beyond individual companies. By demonstrating how accessible, reliable data can drive progress, the initiative has strengthened the case for including ocean energy as a cornerstone of Europe’s renewable energy future.

Engaging the Industry: A Webinar for Knowledge Sharing

To further promote the use of Copernicus Marine Service data, the collaboration hosted a webinar that brought together stakeholders from across the ocean energy sector. The event presented three of the use cases and provided a platform for knowledge exchange, helping potential users understand how to integrate marine data into their projects.

Attendees praised the webinar for its practical insights and inspiring examples. Industry professionals, researchers, and policymakers alike gained a deeper appreciation for the role of Copernicus Marine Service in supporting sustainable energy development. The event also fostered connections among stakeholders, paving the way for future collaborations. You can watch the recording here.

Advancing Renewable Energy and EU Policy Goals

The success of this collaboration highlights the critical role of high-resolution data in achieving Europe’s energy and climate objectives. By enabling smarter site selection, reducing operational costs, and improving energy system efficiency, Copernicus Marine Service data enables an accelerated deployment of ocean energy, contributing directly to the EU’s Green Deal and notably the Renewable Energy Directive objectives.

Moreover, the use cases and webinar have provided policymakers with concrete examples of how data-driven innovation can support the energy transition. This knowledge will be essential as Europe scales up its renewable energy capacity and diversifies its energy supply by integrating sources such as ocean energy into a reliable and sustainable grid.

Learn more about Copernicus Marine Service and its applications: https://marine.copernicus.eu/

Ocean energy farms are instrumental to technological and industrial progress and must be a central focus of innovation efforts until 2030. The conclusion comes from the Strategic Research & Innovation Agenda (SRIA) released today by ETIP Ocean. Other innovations, such as AI modelling tools or materials, remain listed priorities supporting pilot farm development and forming a technology path to industrialisation. Ocean energy is seeing much interest from investors lately following an influx of public funding and could rapidly reach industrial stage if those trends continue.

The SRIA for ocean energy, developed by the sectoral advisory body ETIP Ocean, identifies the research and innovation priorities with the greatest impact on the sector’s progress. The report considers the demonstration of pilot farms as the most crucial area, which reflects the sector’s progress since the previous edition of the SRIA. Research into supporting actions must still continue, as they are necessary building blocks enabling farms. Examples are next generation technologies, analysis and modelling tools, enabling technologies from other sectors and market development.

Orienting public funding is crucial and helps leverage private investment: a project pipeline of 167 MW in Europe is publicly supported via EU programmes or national schemes. This public backing has attracted private sector interest, with several companies already investing in those projects or partnering with technology developers.

Continuing this trend will pave the way for commercial ocean energy projects – consolidating Europe’s position as the global leader in the sector. Europe is already home to the world’s first and largest tidal pilot farms and the most advanced wave energy devices. By implementing the SRIA’s recommendations, Europe can maintain its competitive edge and fully capitalise on the opportunities presented by this emerging zero-emission industry.

Rosalinde van der Vlies, Director at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, said: “The Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda for Ocean Energy presents what needs to happen to ensure that the EU remains the global leader in the sector. Addressing these R&I priorities will drive the development of ocean energy technology, accelerate the progress towards industrial roll-out and help deliver on the targets of the EU Offshore Renewable Energy Strategy and the Renewable Energy Directive.”

Dr. Pablo Ruiz-Minguela, Head of Wave Energy at Tecnalia and the report’s lead author, agreed: “The next five years will be crucial for the sector’s progress towards industrialisation. Delivering on the SRIA actions will accelerate the development from research to large-scale deployments, reinforcing Europe’s energy security and competitiveness with home-grown and sustainable ocean energy.”

Download the updated SRIA here.

Competitiveness and implementation of the Green Deal will be top priorities for the next Commission.

Newly elected Commission President von der Leyen announced her commitment to unlock funding to de-risk private investments in clean technologies, including renewables, through a new European Competitiveness Fund.

She also announced an upcoming European Ocean Pact to boost the European blue economy and ensure good governance of the ocean.

Innovation’s fundamental role in driving European competitiveness was also recognised with the pledge to put innovation ‘at the heart of the European economy’.

These announcements send positive signals for new investments in clean technologies and renewables, and are therefore good news for the ocean energy industry.

Ahead of the European elections, we, members of civil society, firmly believe it is time to seize the momentum and ensure a concrete implementation of the Green Deal through far-reaching and efficient financing tools.

EU institutions have reached historic milestones over the last five years, adopting the Green Deal legislative packages in essential areas, crucial for climate and energy targets and environmental protection. The 455 million EU citizens are now better equipped than the rest of the world to face the climate emergency. The EU pledged to become the first green economy and is on the right way to earn this title. This would not have been possible without the continued cooperation between the diverse stakeholders, from policymakers to scientists, industry and civil society representatives.

Now has come the time of implementation for the Green Deal. This means unlocking important investments of €813 billion per year, according to I4CE1, to reach its climate objectives. A significant share of these investments must go into derisking and accelerating the deployment of breakthrough electricity production technologies that will strengthen the energy and climate resilience of the EU. These priorities must be secured in the next legislative period.

Read the full letter

The ocean energy sector accelerated in 2023, according to the latest statistics released today by Ocean Energy Europe. Low market visibility in the past still impacts 2023 deployment figures but new revenue support at national level drastically changes the outlook. 137 MW of tidal and wave energy projects will seek deployment in the next 5 years thanks to EU funding and national revenue support. This prompted several energy majors to enter the field as investors or partners into projects and is kick-starting the sector’s industrialisation.

France and the UK – two of the leading tidal markets globally – have now implemented per/kWh support for tidal farms, increasing the current tidal pipeline to 127 MW over the next 5 years. This is a major step forward but the continuation of the UK CfD ringfence and the implementation of the commercial tidal tenders announced by French President Macron are vital to cement the industrialisation of the sector.

Wave energy is reaching high levels of technological readiness, as demonstrated by private investments into current projects. Unwavering EU funding helped improve full-scale prototypes and spurred the first pilot farms. However, wave energy will ultimately need the same kind of national revenue support as wind, solar, and now tidal to become a new European industrial success story.

Investments. As anticipated, market visibility at national level coupled with technological progress attracted an unprecedented level of interest from the private sector. Major energy players are building their own ocean energy technologies or partnering up on existing projects. Reported private investments into the sector in 2023 also increased massively – up 75%.

Rémi Gruet, CEO of Ocean Energy Europe, commented: “Revenue support at national level creates bankability for projects and market visibility for investors. It is the main driver for private investments, a message OEE has been consistently passing and which is once again reflected in facts and figures. Coupled with EU-level investment support – still needed for pilot and pre-commercial projects – it is kick-starting the industrialisation of the sector.

The CfD ringfence for tidal in the UK needs to be maintained, and the commercial calls for tidal energy announced by President Macron now need to be enacted. Revenue support for wave needs to be put forward, especially in Portugal, Spain and Ireland. This will ensure investors keep putting projects in the water, reduce costs, and make ocean energy into the home-grown industry it can be.“

Download the Ocean Energy Stats & Trends 2023

The Manifesto for a European Ocean Pact proposes a ground-breaking initiative aimed at catalysing a transformative approach to ocean governance and sustainable economic development within the European Union. As a collaborative effort, initiated by Europe Jacques Delors and the Oceano Azul Foundation, this manifesto endeavours to drive forward a comprehensive agenda that recognises the intrinsic link between the wellbeing of our societies, the competitiveness of our economies and the health of our ocean and waters. A group of high-level stakeholders with deep knowledge and experience of the ocean and the European Union (EU) have nurtured its content and driven forward a robust commitment to the ocean within the next European legislature.

OEE is proud of its contribution to the Manifesto, and the inclusion of wave and tidal energy as key innovative emerging technologies needed to build a strongand competitive European sustainable blue economy.

Read the full Manifesto for a European Ocean Pact

Ocean Energy Europe (OEE) has appointed Guillaume Gréau, Head of Business development for HydroQuest, France, and Patrik Möller, CEO of CorPower Ocean, Sweden, as Co-Presidents. Both companies are global leaders in tidal and wave energy respectively, bringing a wealth of experience in ocean energy technology and project development to the Association.

The Co-Presidents will represent the ocean energy sector during a crucial transitional period, as the industry moves from prototypes and pilots to pre-commercial farms. Their respective projects are amongst the flagship farms that will showcase the sector’s electric and economic potential for Europe and the World.

The Board also welcomes seven new directors, elected yesterday by the OEE General Assembly. This election brings representation from all sides of the ocean energy industry, with directors who all have been instrumental in getting the industry where it is today.

The newly elected Directors are:

• Matthew Finn, Commercial Director, European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC)
• Marlène Kiersnowski, SEENEOH Director, OPEN-C Foundation
• Tony Lewis, Chief Technology Officer, OceanEnergy Ireland
• Patrik Möller, CEO, CorPower Ocean
• Pablo Ruiz Minguela, Head of Wave Energy, Tecnalia
• Benjamin Lehner, CEO, Dutch Marine Energy Centre (DMEC)
• Marcelle Askew, Vice President of Business Development, Seabased

Discover the partnership between Mercator Ocean International and Ocean Energy Europe (OEE), renewing their commitment to leverage Copernicus Marine Service data for advancing ocean energy. Uncover the strategic role of Copernicus, Europe’s earth observation program, in providing indispensable data for tidal stream, wave, and other ocean energy technologies. Explore how this collaboration, building on past successes, aims to expand Copernicus Marine Service adoption, with upcoming use cases and an interactive event in spring 2024, ensuring a sustainable and innovative path for Europe’s ocean energy sector.

Collaboration between Mercator Ocean International and OEE

The collaboration between Mercator Ocean International and Ocean Energy Europe continues, aimed at fostering the use of Copernicus Marine Service data in the ocean energy sector. This initiative builds upon their successful partnership established in 2018, which saw a remarkable 30% surge in users from the ocean energy sector within the first year.

The Position

OEE is seeking an Administrative Officer to manage the administrative functions of the office and support our team of Policy, Communications and Projects professionals. The Administrative Officer is responsible for their own areas – mostly HR and accounting – and assists the rest of the team with a focus on the administrative tasks of the association.

The Administrative Officer works with support from the CEO on accounting and HR, and in collaboration with the other members of the team depending on the task at hand.

The Position

We are at a critical time for wave & tidal energy. The drive to Net Zero and the importance of greater energy independence creates a huge need for diverse sources of renewable energy. The European Commission recognises this and has set ambitious deployment targets for ocean energy by 2027 and 2030. Furthermore, recent public support to the sector is driving new projects and the industrialisation of the sector.

Scaling up an industry requires supportive funding and policy, and OEE is committed to delivering this for Europe’s ocean energy sector.

We are looking for an enthusiastic & experienced Policy Officer to join us on this mission! You will work alongside 6 colleagues committed to push for the best possible framework to develop ocean energy at EU and national level. We are looking for a like-minded individual, committed to help make the energy transition happen. The position can cater to either Junior or Senior Policy Officers.