Paving the way for permitting ocean energy farms

This document gives key recommendations to facilitate permitting for ocean energy in Europe. Europe is the global leader in ocean energy, having designed, manufactured, and installed more ocean energy devices than the rest of the world combined. Over the next five years, 165 MW of publicly supported pilot and pre-commercial farms will be deployed in European waters.

Some of these projects still require permitting, but permitting innovative projects like ocean energy can be a time-consuming process. Regulators must often operate within imperfect frameworks and struggle to assess the impact of innovative technologies that have not been previously deployed. Long and complicated permitting processes inflate project costs and can ultimately render projects unfeasible for developers.

This document is based on the key takeaways from two ETIP workshops involving public authorities, developers, and test sites.

Read it here.