Flying over the ocean near Porto, north of Portugal, you can now see three small red lines sitting on top of the ocean. They were not there before and could be the start of seeing red lines floating around the Portuguese coastline. Getting closer to them apparently makes a big difference as these red lines actually become 140m long tubes. It has taken a British company ten years to make them and they are now floating in the sea off the coast of Portugal — and are the beginning of an entirely new energy industry. Yesterday, the red tubes were inaugurated as part of the world’s first commercial-scale wave-power station, three miles from the shoreline.
The project, which will generate clean electricity for more than 1,000 family homes in its first phase, marks the latest step in Portugal’s moves to become a leader in developing renewable energy sources. The system is simple. Energy converters set within the tubes turn the never-ending wave movements into electricity. Designed and built by the Edinburgh-based company Pelamis Wave Power, they convert the motion into electricity, without emitting any of the carbon dioxide responsible for warming the planet. “The future of wave energy starts today,” said Manuel Pinho, Portugal’s economics minister. “Renewable energy is the source of energy for the future and we think this can create an industrial revolution and a lot of opportunities for jobs and research and we want to be ahead of the curve.” 
What does this mean for Portugal and the planet?
The three tubes can produce up to 2.25MW of power, which is enough for 1,500 family homes for a year. However, another 25 tubes will be added that will extend the output to 21MW of power. That will save 60,000 tonnes of CO2 per year instead of using fossil fuels. Wave power is also more reliable and predictable than wind power, providing constant energy that is transferred from the tubes via an undersea cable to a substation in Aguçadoura, which then feeds the power into the Portuguese national grid. So in addition to providing power, they also do not create visual or audio pollution which seems to be the main issue for wind farms. What is amazing is that this is only one of a number of clean energy, renewable energy systems in Portugal — the country has also invested in wind power and solar power.
With this diligence in mind, why can’t other countries move forward as Portugal is doing? Seeing as the Wave power elements were produced in the UK, why is it that we are not launching anything ourselves? The U.S. has such a large coastline and could become the wave power superpower in years to come. In three years, Portugal has tripled its hydroelectric capacity and quadrupled its wind power sources, including building the largest wind farm in the world with over 130 turbines. With the launch of this wave system they could soon be not only powering their own grid, but neighbouring countries too. Video clip showing how the wave tubes work. Learn more here.