A team of researchers funded in part with EU funds have discovered that energy produced from the planet's oceans can increase twofold when novel methods for predicting wave power are used. In particular, they developed a way to accurately predict the power of the next wave to extract more energy than double what is generated today. Even though, researchers believe that more subsidies are needed in this field to continue the research.

A team of researchers from Israel and the United Kingdom has discovered thanks to the WAVEPORT ('Demonstration and deployment of a commercial scale wave energy converter with an innovative real time wave by wave tuning system') project, which has received funds from the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7), that energy produced from the planet's oceans can increase twofold when novel methods for predicting wave power are used.

In particular, scientists developed a system that gives the device the ability to extract the maximum amount of energy by predicting the incoming wave. So the data allows a program to actively control the response needed for a wave of a specific size. The chance of the device being damaged is lessened because it responds appropriately to the force of the next wave. The upshot, therefore, is that the device need not be turned off during volatile weather conditions, which is what happens now.

Researchers highlighted that while marine energy could provide twice the amount of power to the United Kingdom, the actual extraction and conversion of such energy is not up to par with solar or wind power. Marine energy is also not commercially competitive without subsidy. And while significant advances have been made in this area of research, scientists have been unable to ensure that devices are not damaged by the hostile marine environment. They have also been unable to enhance the efficiency of energy capture from waves.