Europe’s ocean energy sector continued to advance toward commercialisation in 2024, buoyed by increasing deployments and a growing project pipeline, according to new data released on Thursday by Ocean Energy Europe (OEE).
The trade association reported growth in both tidal and wave energy segments, with several full-scale wave devices deployed over the past year and the pipeline of pre-commercial tidal farms expanding steadily. Approximately 165 megawatts of capacity across 15 publicly backed tidal energy projects are expected to be deployed within the next five years.
“This progress builds momentum and increases private investors’ confidence in the sector,” OEE said in its annual update.
The development pipeline is underpinned by European and national grant schemes, as well as revenue support mechanisms, particularly in the UK and France. OEE said such long-term policy commitments have enhanced market visibility and attracted private capital.
“A continuous and coordinated interplay of revenue support and grant funding is needed to grow the pipeline even further and accelerate the industrialisation of ocean energy,” the organisation stated.
Wave energy also achieved key milestones in both technology and finance during 2024, with several devices moving closer to commercial-scale deployment. European grant funding has played a crucial role in these developments, but OEE stressed the need for national revenue support to make upcoming wave projects financially viable.
Valentin Dupont, Senior Policy Officer at Ocean Energy Europe, said: “The UK and France demonstrated with tidal that when national revenue support is in place, farm projects thrive, and private investment quickly follows. It makes projects bankable by offering predictable returns to investors. We need to do the same for wave — especially in Portugal, Spain, the UK, and Ireland.”
Dupont also called for more support from the European Investment Bank (EIB), urging the institution to offer debt funding and guarantees for early-stage ocean energy farms. “This will lower the cost of capital, attract further private investment, and boost the industrialisation on the continent,” he added.
OEE highlighted ocean energy’s potential to contribute to Europe’s decarbonisation and competitiveness goals. The association estimates the sector could generate 100 gigawatts of predictable, renewable power and create up to 400,000 jobs, with export potential across global markets.
