Making waves: Australia's Carnegie seeks Chinese partners to commercialise wave energy

China has managed to significantly cut the power generation cost of wind turbines and solar panels over the past five years. Now a company from Australia is betting China can do it again for one of the world’s last untapped renewable energy sources – ocean wave power.

Michael Ottaviano, chief executive of Fremantle, Western Australia-based Carnegie Wave Energy, said his firm is seeking potential manufacturing partners in China to help it reach a goal of slashing the cost of producing electricity from waves by 80 per cent to A$0.1 per kilo-watt-hour, the level needed to mass commercialise the untapped energy.

“Everybody [in China] that we have been in touch with is interested in our project since they can see the potential of wave energy,” he told the South China Morning Post. “Some have been involved in the wind or solar equipment industry and understand the market potential.

“The question for us is finding out who could truly deliver quality products at a good price.”

Ottaviano said Carnegie chairman Jeffrey Harding and a few senior staff have recently paid visits to potential partners in China to inspect their production facilities.

The company prefers to work with Chinese firms that have already been supplying the international market, and it hopes to announce a manufacturing partner by the end of March, he added.