(Bloomberg) — Eco Wave Power, an Israeli maker of ocean
energy systems, raised initial funding for a $150 million
pipeline of planned projects to use waves to generate
electricity.
The technology maker secured $2 million from Pirveli
Ventures, with a representative of Pirveli joining its board of
directors, Eco Wave said Monday. It will use the funds to start
to develop 111 megawatts of marine-energy projects planned in
countries including the U.K., China, Mexico and Chile, co-founder Inna Braverman said by e-mail.
Eco Wave is currently installing a 5-megawatt project off
Gibraltar that when fully commissioned may provide as much as 15
percent of the British overseas territory’s electricity, the
company said. It also won Chinese government funding in March to
set up a unit in Changshu.
Wave and tidal energy technologies are still in their
infancy as developers continue to test and scale-up prototype
devices. Electricity from the waves currently costs more than
five times that of coal-fired power, according to Bloomberg
estimates.
To contact the reporter on this story:
Louise Downing in London at
ldowning4@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story:
Reed Landberg at
landberg@bloomberg.net
Randall Hackley, John Deane