ENE · Tidal & wave
Tidal and wave energy
The one renewable resource that does not stop. Special water turbines convert the mechanical energy of water motion into continuous generation.
Overview
Overview
By using special water turbines, it is possible to generate electricity by harnessing the mechanical energy generated by the motion of the waves. The major advantage of wave and tidal energy generation is the uninterrupted generation of electricity — which is exactly the characteristic that solar and wind do not have and that grids increasingly need.
The following characteristics are associated with this energy source:
- Clean energy source — no combustion, no emissions during operation.
- Never-ending — the resource is driven by gravitational and meteorological forces that do not deplete.
- Independent — it does not depend on fuel supply chains or on prices set elsewhere.
- Continuous — unlike solar and wind, output does not stop.
Tidal and wave projects are earlier in their commercial development than the other renewables on this site, and we treat them accordingly. Our engagement typically starts with feasibility and resource assessment, and we are explicit about where the technology risk sits rather than presenting it as a solved problem.
Detail
What makes marine energy engineering different
The environment is the hard part
Seawater, biofouling, storm loading, fatigue from continuous cyclic motion and access for maintenance dominate the engineering. A machine that works perfectly in a tank fails on a marine site for reasons that have nothing to do with its hydrodynamics.
These are the same disciplines that offshore wind demands — mooring analysis, dynamic cable design, marine installation planning — and where our offshore wind capability is directly transferable.
Why the continuity matters commercially
A generation source that runs continuously has a very different value to a grid than one that runs when the weather allows. It reduces the storage a system needs, it improves capacity factor, and it makes the revenue model less dependent on when generation happens to coincide with price.
Where output still needs shaping, our energy storage scope covers five storage families.
Detail
How we engage on a marine energy project
Resource and feasibility
Site resource characterisation, metocean assessment, and an honest feasibility study including the technology maturity risk.
Engineering
Conceptual, basic and detailed engineering, drawing on the same mooring, dynamic cable and marine structures disciplines we apply to offshore wind.
Pilot and demonstration
We recognise the risks in adopting new systems and technologies, and we invest in testing, building pilot plants and making enhancements to develop reliable, scalable solutions. Marine energy is precisely the kind of project where that approach is warranted.
Delivery and commissioning
EPC or EPCM execution, or owner's engineering, followed by testing, initial implementation and commissioning.
Applications
Applications and challenges
Where it applies
- Tidal stream generation in high-current channels
- Wave energy conversion on exposed coastlines
- Island and remote coastal community supply
- Grid support where continuous renewable output has particular value
- Hybrid marine, wind and storage schemes
- Pilot and demonstration installations
Common challenges we are asked to solve
- Survivability under storm loading and cyclic fatigue
- Biofouling and corrosion in seawater
- Maintenance access and vessel cost
- Grid connection from an offshore or remote coastal site
- Technology maturity risk affecting financing
- Consenting and marine environmental assessment
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Is tidal and wave energy commercially mature?
Less so than solar, wind or hydro, and we say that openly. Our engagement usually starts with feasibility and resource assessment, and we invest in testing, pilot plants and enhancement to develop reliable, scalable solutions rather than treating the technology risk as somebody else's problem.
Why is continuous generation such an advantage?
Because it changes what the grid has to do around it. Uninterrupted generation reduces the storage a system needs and improves capacity factor, which affects both the revenue model and the cost of the wider system.
What experience transfers from your other work?
Offshore wind directly: mooring and dynamic cable analysis, floating foundation design, marine installation and commissioning management. Hydropower for the water turbine engineering itself.
Can you support a technology developer rather than a project owner?
Yes — that is what our startup accelerator exists for: engineering support, industrial networking, international sales, investment and offtake for companies with a technology and no route to market.
Evidence
Projects
Sample layout. Reference projects are being cleared for publication with the clients concerned. The structure below is final; the content is placeholder.
SampleWater reuse retrofit — sample card
Card layout for a completed water reuse project: stream data before and after, recovery achieved, scope Glorinda held, and the client's own words.
SampleZLD package — sample card
Card layout for a zero liquid discharge package: feed characterisation, evaporator type selected, solid output route, and commissioning duration.
SampleOwner's engineer mandate — sample card
Card layout for an advisory mandate: the client's decision, the options assessed, and what changed in the tender as a result.
Conversion
Take this further
Send us the stream data, the discharge limit or the equipment list you are working from. An engineer reads every enquiry and replies with the questions that actually decide the solution — not a brochure.
Contact
Talk it through with an engineer
Send the constraint you are designing around and we will tell you what is realistic before anyone writes a specification.