The ES-Wave

TWEFDA Ltd has been developing a concept for the past 5 years which is a novel platform for wave and tidal range energy capture, including energy storage in the same device. They have patent-pending status as of June 4th, 2021.

The system may be suitable to repurpose some oil and gas jackets and pipelines, can work 24/7, and can be integrated with other offshore generators offsetting their production to accommodate the grid’s requirements.

As a generator, it may produce more energy than any other Point Absorber in the market thanks to its patented weight changing mechanisms.

As energy storage, the device stores large amounts of potential energy, in the range of MWh, to supply to the grid not when the renewable resource is available but when the energy is required. In addition, the energy storage can be ramped up or down as required.

The energy that cannot be directly delivered or stored can be converted into hydrogen or carbon capture and the carbon can be sequestrated sometimes in existing oil and gas wells or exported for utilisation; whereas the hydrogen can be partially stored or exported with repurposed pipelines or other means if this is not applicable.

Due to its incredible flexibility, this tool requires decisions to be made according to the market status. For instance, if there is too much energy in the national grid, it could be worth starting to store energy. If the 'storable' energy has reached its threshold, hydrogen or carbon capture can be triggered.

TWEFDA is also considering a brand new market related to energy transition companies understanding this concept as companies dealing with more than one 'transition technology' such as generation, storage, carbon capture and/or hydrogen production.