It may not be as shiny as solar, or exciting as wind, but marine energy is what many analysts are now calling, "The Sleeping Giant of Renewables."

And it's easy to see why.

Marine energy is the world's largest untapped energy source, and it maintains a significant advantage over both solar and wind--it's constant.

While solar and wind certainly offer up some pretty impressive investment opportunities (Just ask those who are up 59.4% on the Alternative Energy Speculator's latest solar play), both wind and solar power systems only provide intermittent power generation, as sunlight and wind are not available 24/7.

Marine energy, however, is constant with the motion of the waves and tides. That is 24/7--and there's enough of it to...

Marine Energy: Power the Entire Globe

Just ask the experts...

• The World Energy Council has estimated that marine energy could supply twice as much electricity as the entire world now consumes.
• The Electric Power Research Institute has estimated wave energy along the U.S. coastlines at 2,100 TWh per year, or roughly half the country's total electricity consumption.
• And a study prepared for the Scottish Parliament estimated that the wave energy potential for Europe is about three times the current electrical generating capacity of the UK. As well, the study estimated that the power could be delivered on par with the cost of grid power.

Heck, even peak oil and energy expert, Matt Simmons is organizing a facility in Rockland, Maine called the Ocean Energy Institute. Simmons stated in a recent interview that you only need about $50 million--which he said is nothing in the energy business--to get you through at least five years of seeing how real this area is.

Part of the Ocean Energy Institute, by the way, includes a venture-capital fund!

Turning the Tide

While marine energy is definitely in its infancy compared to pretty much all the other energy sources we use today, it's starting to gain a lot of attention--and more importantly, large influxes of investment capital. This is primarily due to improved technology that's enabling better economics, coupled with new deployments that are proving these projects can deliver the goods...competitively.

In fact, just last week a company called Marine Current Turbines successfully completed the first installation phase of its 1.2MW tidal power system in the waters of the Strangford Narrows in Northern Ireland.

The system, known as SeaGen, is expected to be fully operational later this summer, where it will operate between 18 to 20 hours per day, producing enough electricity for 1,000 homes.

Not surprisingly, a power purchase agreement has been signed with ESB-- Ireland's national electric company.

Incidentally, the company also had little trouble landing $15 million in funding from Triodos Bank and hedge fund, AM2 last year.

Here in the U.S., there have also been a number of marine energy projects under construction over the past few years. And many have since been deployed, and are now being tested.

• In New York City, Verdant Power is testing a few tidal current turbines in the East River. They expect to have 10MW running by 2010.
• In San Francisco, Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE:PCG) is working with local agencies to explore tidal power projects in the San Francisco Bay. The Electric Power Research Institute has actually stated that the city could tap enough wave power at Ocean Beach to keep all of San Francisco lit.
• Ocean Power Technologies (NASDAQ:OPTT) has deployed systems in Oahu, Hawaii, and has an operational wave energy system in New Jersey.

There's also a small Canadian company that's recently received its permit approval for a wave energy project in Oregon. Even better - the company has landed a 15- year deal with PG&E to deliver power starting in 2010.

That's less than two years away!

You can find out more about this company by becoming a member of the Alternative Energy Speculator.

To a new way of life, and a new generation of wealth...

Jeff

"Energy stocks... The only way a human is going to make any money."

-- Matt Simmons, Peak Oil's first and most vocal proponent,
and founder of the country's last pure play energy investment banking firm.

Follow the money trail. Sign up for Energy and Capital now.

Enter Your E-mail Address Below:

By signing up, you'll also get our latest report, The Truth About Oil.

How about utilizing the water for cooling and returning it back.
An open loop system.
It could save a substantial amount of energy.

OTEC has been forgotten since the 1980's, but, since surface sea water temps have risen due to global warming, I bet a "Tesla Technology" turbine system could collect a lot of heat energy. Unlike wave or tide power, this energy is easy to collect, and not dependant on Lunar phases.

I have sat on the beach in costa rica, and thought of many ways a person ought to be able to use all the waves crashing in, I think a person could easily use a floating piston to turn a turbine up and down. very similar to the old steam engine.

Great Article here ,but there is a couple products and system that could give us Energy at much lower cost, and cleaner air, over next five year, but as a memebr of these Compnay and use of these products, at least one of them, the Power Gen, has been, faught off from Gov't and Electric Companies ofr over five years, and cause we do share knowledge by way of mouth, peopel, listen to the news and some leaders saying can't happen, it's fraud, but one of thise product, you put into your gas tank, it will casue your engine to burn 100% of fuel, leaving nothing but HO2 that comes out the tail pipe,you can take big instake of tail pipe and not cough.
Better performance of engine,up to 35%. This is also done by word of mouth,and if peopel join as memebr, they will get paid by each person they get to use product,by comnpany,
Just as the POwer Gen, for home, is done, but America is so busy, spending and burning fuel, they can't even watch Cspan,to hear congress ,senate or anyone telling of the trouble we're headed into,
The depression is hear, and inflation at same time, and where in heck is washington getting money to bail out the Big Corp,and the people leadership that got us into this mess5 of factories overseas, an, both parties are to blame, really it's the people them self to blame,
I'm listening to Nader Gonazales, running for president, he's telling half truth, but then if we didn't go for the oil, and since we've moved 70% of factories overseas, and even the other products that we should be doing all our selvies, we're buying it from Germany and England, which is why they say we are Global.
What if they cut off the products to produce weapon and we dont' have material and factories to make it, we're up the river without a motor,
So, we mus tchange our ways and get back on top with being more independant on our self, as for as producing waht we need.
So, I appreciate your news letter, but let's talk about the change not about what happen yesterday day,
YOu want know more, of thigns that isn't put on the news, I've got it,
I'm also, 64yrs old, tired of Politics, and want action people not whinners,
As for as the POwer Gen, the Company has , made a change, now i"m getting a engine rebuildt for a 1992 Park AVe, Buick, and with the system I"m putting on it, it will get around 45 miles a gal,around town, and 60 on road,

Also, when we go Digital for Communication , i thank they will build a antinia to be placed on home, thisis where new Companies iwll come into place, and normal ISP, compnaies will have a fit, lawyers will have a field day,but then I've been trying to get these Compnaies to make the change for five years, It would be more affordable to them and people, but Wall Street wouldnt' here it,also, peole that buys stock market, I have a perosn half friend, two blocks from me, that has 3.5 million in stock market, and he said, never happen, he's also, I found out coulle weeks ago, he's on two boards of stock market, Claimed he didn't now how to emial, bull shit,People that have spent 20 and over yrs to put our life on line for these people, will have us to answer too. The fever is rising, All these cuts in market place, but yet, never hear a leadership perosn, say nothing about the $4500 pay raise they get every year. For what, screwing up our country,
Just in my state along, it would save 12 Billion dolars a year,
If we cut that raise,called 3% pay raise each year, on auto-pilot. Nobody , talking about that cost,
Well, this is long enough, thanks again, for having such page,

It may interest you that in Nova Scotia Canada a tidal power plant was constructed at least 20 years ago & is still generating electricity. It is located on the Annapolis River close to the 50ft tides of the Bay of Fundy. Bill.

Hello,

Read your article with interest.
I would like to draw your attention to another renewable form of energy concerned with seawater. In Holland we have a lot of meeting places between salt and sweet water. The technology here is to draw energy from the difference between these two: ie. the salt content difference. The principle has to do with osmosis.[I am not a technician, don't know the details]. It is still very experimental, but promising.A pilot project is being planned in the area of the 'Afsluitdijk', which is the barrier between the North Sea and the 'IJsselmeer', which is an artifial large sweet-water lake in the north of the country.

with compliments,

M. Heuijmans

PS if you are interested I'll look up some more info on this idea, and the project: plse let me know.

mh

Jeff,

I liked your article in that it is truly one of the first in North America that recognizes the big picture and the near term commercial potential of the industry. While you mentioned our company, Verdant Power - thank you very much - there are a fair number of real players out there that you may also want to follow, especially as they start announcing their IPO's. To this end, there is a Global Marine Renewable Conference in NYC on the 17th/18th. It is clearly the largest and highest quality gathering of the real industry participants ever held, including most of the international industry front runners, and NYC financial community. As a media participant, the conference fee is waived upon presentation of your credentials. See www.globalmarinerenewable.com
All of the companies mentioned in your article, plus many more - plus Matt Simmons - will be there.

Best wishes,
Kevin Lynch, CFO
Verdant Power