A 42-meter steel buoy called MARMOK-A-5 operates as a wave energy converter in the Bay of Biscay near Bilbao. An updated version was deployed in May 2026 at the Biscay Marine Energy Platform as part of a EuropeWave pre-commercial procurement effort. The system uses a floating spar buoy with a cylindrical water column. Incoming waves move the water column like a piston, compressing and expanding an air chamber. The air motion drives a turbine that produces electricity. Power is sent to shore through a subsea cable. The original unit was first connected to Spain’s electricity grid in 2016, and the newer version includes upgrades such as a new power take-off system, controllable turbine blades, and onboard batteries.
"In May 2026, an updated version of the MARMOK-A-5 was successfully deployed at the Biscay Marine Energy Platform (BiMEP), off the coast of Bilbao, as part of the EuropeWave Pre-Commercial Procurement program. IDOM is one of three finalists competing for a share of a €13.4 million budget to develop and test next-generation wave energy technology. And unlike a lot of clean energy news that tends to stay in the realm of promises and projections, this one is already in the water, already connected to the grid, and already generating real-world data."
"The MARMOK-A-5 is a wave energy converter, and it works on a principle that's almost elegant in its simplicity. The main structure is a floating spar buoy, 5 meters in diameter and weighing 162 tons. Inside it sits a cylindrical water column. As ocean waves pass through, the water inside rises and falls like a piston. That motion compresses and expands an air chamber at the top of the buoy, and the resulting rush of air spins a turbine."
"That turbine generates electricity, which travels to shore through a subsea cable. No burning, no drilling, no fuel. Just water moving the way it always has. The technology has been in development for years. IDOM first deployed the original MARMOK-A-5 at BiMEP back in 2016, making it the first wave energy converter ever connected to the Spanish state electricity grid."
"The version now in the water is significantly upgraded, featuring a newly developed power take-off system, controllable turbine blades, onboard batteries"
#wave-energy #renewable-energy #marine-energy-platforms #energy-conversion-systems #grid-connected-power
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