Riding a Wave of International Interest
Hawaii poised to lead renewable energy field for Nation & Pacific Basin

By Representative Cynthia Thielen
Published in Midweek Newspaper, September 19, 2011

Southampton, England » At the Opening Ceremony of the recent five day European Wave and Tidal Energy Conference (EWTEC), I presented a Proclamation from Gov. Abercrombie and Lt. Gov. Schatz encouraging wave energy developers "to strongly consider Hawai‘i as an ideal market to present your products to the world…" I further informed the nearly 500 attendees from 29 nations that Marine Corps Base Hawai‘i at Kaneohe Bay was leading our State with its plans to construct a wave hub, where local and international wave energy converters (WECs) could be "plugged in" and tested in Hawaii's waters. This readies Hawai‘i to benefit from a global surge in wave energy production.

Professor AbuBakr Bahaj, Chair of EWTEC 2011, Rep. Cynthia Thielen and Dr. Tony Lewis, University College Cork, Ireland (left to right), discussing CORES project. Photo courtesy of James Kelly, CORES.

There are nearly 10 WEC companies close to full commercial stage in Europe and Australia; several are already engaged with utilities, meaning they will go online. The CORES project (Components for Ocean Renewable Energy Systems), led by Dr. Tony Lewis, Director of the Hydraulics & Maritime Research Centre, University College Cork, Ireland, has been a collaborative effort by 13 partners in seven countries to harness the "world's largest remaining unexploited renewable energy resource." CORES demonstrates how international collaboration can bring wave energy online and its sea-test results have been very encouraging.

EWTEC Chair AbuBakr Bahaj notes that "many countries have embarked on policies that are highly reliant on the expansion of large-scale offshore wind energy to electric power, with only small attention being directed to [wave] renewable energy." He notes, "it is important not to marginalize the utilization of other ocean resources" by focusing only on wind.

Until Marine Corps Base Hawai‘i (MCBH) stepped forward, Hawaii's policies have been primarily limited to wind and solar, thereby ignoring the vast and powerful non-polluting natural energy source surrounding our islands. The fuel – the waves – are free, unlike imported fossil fuel the utilities use to power our islands. Thanks to the leadership of MCBH, Hawai‘i will soon tap into our wave resources, ultimately reducing the cost of power and our addiction to oil.

Wave Energy Archives:

2010 Conference: Europe leads way in wave energy effort

Representative Cynthia Thielen • State Capitol, Room 443 • 415 South Beretania Street • Honolulu, Hawaii 96813 • Phone: (808) 586-6480