A 10-MW wave power park for Tongatapu is expected to be developed by Dublin-based wave energy technology firm, Seabased Group, and ready for commissioning within 24-months, it was announced in New York last week.

On 14 March, Tonga's Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Va'inga Tone added his signature as Chair of the SIDS DOCK Executive Council, to a three-party MOU signed in February between the Tonga government, SIDS DOCK, and the Seabased Group.

The project is designed to tackle high energy costs. An initial 2-MW phase is expected to save Tonga USD 2 million (EUR 1.87m) in foreign exchange, replace two million litres of fuel and provide enough power for 2,800 homes, according to the announcement. The second phase will add a further 8 MW. It is projected to meet half Tonga’s energy needs and reduce emissions by 20%.

The Minister of Internal Affairs, Lord Vaea, in New York last week, announced the signing of the agreement for the development and deployment of this first pilot commercial-scale two-megawatt (2MW) Wave Power Park in Tonga.

Lord Vaea from Houma, said the technology can capture the energy generated from the waves coming to the shores of Tongatapu and turn that into electricity.

He said the Tongatapu Seabased Wave Power Park can be ready for commissioning within 24 months, with a Power Purchase Agreement and at no cost to the Government.

“The project will eventually see Tonga deploy up to 10 MW, meeting more than fifty percent (50%) of Tonga’s electricity needs, cutting Tonga’s carbon emissions by twenty percent (20%), providing clean and affordable baseload power, 24/7 from the waves off the coast of the main island, Tongatapu.

“Amazingly, using Seabased Group’s “Blue Wave Power” innovative technology, a 40 MW Wave Park could meet 200% of Tonga’s electricity needs.”

Technology 

Laurent Albert, Seabased Group CEO, said the Seabased wave technology is proven and it took about 20-years, 20 PhDs, and 12 generations of generators to come up with this system and the design was not about producing energy, it was about producing energy to be distributed, a major unmet need in Small Island Developing States (SIDS). 

He said not only is the Seabased wave technology a proven innovative system, but it also has major environmental benefits.

“It stands on the seafloor, causing no damage as there is no piling or drilling with no disturbance to the environment; it has an innovative base that was specifically designed for marine life to safely shelter and breed, a key factor for the SIDS fisheries industry as it is invisible, except for a small buoy on the surface, located approximately fifteen kilometers or nine miles (15 km/9 mi) from shore and invisible from the shore,” he said.

"SIDS are moving urgently to develop their ocean energy resources and in doing this, are literally waving goodbye to expensive oil imports and are seeking paths that are fossil fuel free, a path that is inevitable."

“Tonga is like all SIDS, and we are all faced with some of the highest energy costs in the world, and it is our women, children and other vulnerable groups in our populations that are being affected by the impacts, including high fuel, food, water, medicinal, transportation and other costs, which none of our Governments have control over."

Bermuda

It was also noted that the Government of Bermuda had signed an agreement with Seabased Group on the heels of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of Parties (COP 26) climate talks in 2021, for the development of what promises to be the world’s first utility-scale commercial ocean wave power park.

With a 40MW capacity, the Seabased Bermuda Wave Power Park will feed the island’s grid, providing roughly ten percent (10%) of Bermuda’s energy needs. 

Also present were other Ambassadors and Permanent Representatives and representatives from SIDS Permanent Missions to the UN, representatives from Seabased Group.

SIDS DOCK is a UN recognised international organisation representing 32 small islands and low-lying developing states across the globe, designed to connect the energy sector in SIDS with the global markets for finance and sustainable energy technologies.