Here’s Why The Navy Is Betting On Wave Energy Research In Hawaii … Hawaii wants cleaner energy to fight climate change. The military wants renewable energy for fighting China.
The military and civilian researchers in Hawaii have stepped up efforts to harness the powerful waves and ocean currents off Oahu as a source of renewable energy.
The Navy recently gave an infusion of $6 million to continue research into the viability of wave energy that’s been taking place near Marine Corps Base Hawaii since the early 2000s.
The focus is on the Navy’s Wave Energy Test Site in the waters near the Marine base in Kaneohe — the only grid-connected wave energy testing site in the United States.
Hawaii — the nation’s most petroleum-dependent state — is exploring wave energy as a possible source to help meet its goal to rely on 100% renewable energy by 2045. The military is looking for ways to more efficiently fuel forces increasingly focused on the Pacific as it battles China for influence.
