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Wave power: A new R&D agenda for oceans and energy

Private online Science|Business Network expert roundtable (15:00 – 17:00 CET)


As the United Nations prepares to launch its Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021 – 2030), the prospect of sourcing clean energy at scale from the ocean is starting to attract the attention of policy makers, industry and leading research and innovation agencies. Before December, the European Commission will issue a new strategy for offshore renewables, while countries such as Canada and a handful of EU member-states are already investing significantly in the domain of tidal, wave and wind energy.

However, a range of obstacles will need to be overcome before offshore renewables become a mainstream part of future energy mixes. In tidal and wave power, for example, the technological landscape is fragmented, with many promising solutions ‘stuck’ at early- to mid-stage TRL. Relevant infrastructure in coastal areas – including storage and transmission – remains relatively scarce, leading to persistently high unit costs. Meanwhile, public R&D budgets are minor compared to equivalents for onshore technologies, while uncertainties about regulatory frameworks and market establishment (among others) have limited private investment to date.

Against this backdrop, the objectives of this online debate are twofold. First, to explore the current technology pathways which offer the most compelling growth prospects and business opportunities, with a particular focus on tidal and wave energy; and second, to debate a range of policy measures and international cooperation mechanisms which would enable offshore renewables to accelerate and scale, attract inwards investment to new programmes, and remove current barriers to market development. A formal summary of proceedings and recommendations will be published following the online meeting.

Featured guests
Speakers
Roland Roesch
Director-General, Innovation and Technology Center, International Renewable Energy Agency
Mark van Stiphout
Deputy Head of Unit, Innovation, clean technologies and competitiveness, DG Energy, European Commission
Inna Braverman
Board member, Founder and CEO, Eco Wave Power Ltd.
Xavier Guillou
Team Leader, Marine Renewable Energies and Maritime Spatial Planning, DG Mare, European Commission
Rémi Gruet
Chief Executive Officer, Ocean Energy Europe
Gesine Meissner
Board Member, Horizon Europe Oceans Mission, Former MEP
Stephen Wyatt
Research and Innovation Director, Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult
Susan Hunt
Chief Technology Officer, Ocean Supercluster Canada
Britta Schaffmeister
CEO, Dutch Marine Energy Centre
Patrik Möller
CEO, Corpower Ocean
Karen Surridge
Centre manager, Renewable Energy Centre of Research and Development (RECORD), South African National Energy Development Institute (SANEDI)
João Peças Lopes
Associate Director, INESC TEC
Matthijs Soede
Programme Officer, DG Research, European Commission
Davide Magagna
Scientific Officer, Joint Research Centre, European Commission
Biswajit Basu
Professor, Civil and Structural Engineering, Trinity College Dublin
Marios Christou
Lecturer, Fluid Mechanics, Imperial College London
Ingvild Kjørrefjord
Senior Advisor, Innovation Norway
Andrea Alessi
Program Manager, Marine Renewable Energy R&D Projects, Eni
Eduardo Silva
TEC4SEA Coordinator, INESC TEC / ISEP
Programme
Programme

Preliminary Agenda

15:00 – Welcome & opening remarks

15:05 – Sea change: Are tidal and wave power ready to enter the mainstream energy mix?  

Exploring the current technology pathways in tidal and wave energy which offer the most compelling growth prospects and business opportunities, and the challenge of increasing their visibility in strategic policy thinking.    

Moderated by Simon Pickard, Network Director, and Janni Ekrem, Project Manager, Science|Business

16:00 – Powering ahead: Priority areas for future R&I policy, programmes and partnerships

Identifying a range of policy measures and international cooperation mechanisms which would enable these to accelerate and scale, attract inwards investment to new programmes, and remove current barriers to market development.  

Moderated by Antoine Rayroux, Special Advisor, Canada, and Simon Pickard, Network Director, Science|Business

16:55 – Concluding remarks

17:00 – End of roundtable

Information
Practical Information

For more information on this event, please contact Janni Ekrem at [email protected]

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