Publications

Survey of Energy Resources 2007

Wave - Introduction

The first serious study of wave energy took place in the 1970s and early 1980s when several governments undertook national R&D programmes as a response to the emerging oil crises. Since the late 1990s a number of small companies have tried to develop and commercialise a range of different wave energy technologies as a non-polluting source of energy, which has resulted in a number of full-size devices being deployed in the sea. In some countries, these initiatives have been accompanied by government-funded activities, as well as developments in international organisations such as the European Commission and the International Energy Agency.