‘Blue economy’ report released as wave energy prep starts at Port of L.A.

A two-year demonstration project at the Port of Los Angeles to harness energy from the waves is just part of the vision at AltaSea in San Pedro, where the focus is to help develop a cutting-edge “blue” economy.

A new report released this month said more needs to be done, however, to tap into what some believe is a promising future in developing ocean-based industries. The report — “The Blue Economy in Los Angeles County: Charting A Course Forward” — includes workforce development and closing curriculum gaps to take advantage of the possibilities of growth.

AltaSea, a marine research campus located near the Outer Harbor in San Pedro and the Port of Los Angeles, has made the blue economy a focus as in signs innovative tenants — including private entrepreneurs and universities — to chart the way forward.

The 64-page report, said Terry Tamminen, president and CEO of AltaSea, focuses on how untapped talent can be used to move toward an economy that uses what the ocean has to offer.

“To power these new jobs, it is incumbent upon us to address existing curriculum gaps and provide Southern California students with the sector-specific knowledge an skills training demanded by the innovative blue economy employers that will drive this economy in the coming decades,” Tamminen said in a written statement.

The report, he added, “provides a “valuable roadmap and tool to accomplish greater job creation in Los Angeles and beyond.”

The report — prepared by the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation and Blue Economy & Climate Action Pathways — follows up on an initial 2019 report on the blue economy done in collaboration with AltaSea.

Meanwhile, work is underway at AltaSea to launch the EcoWave Power project which was given its final approval by the Port of Los Angeles which issued a permit on March 27.

The two-year EcoWave Power pilot program will be conducted at Berth 70 in the port’s Outer Harbor. Eco Wave is a Swedish company founded in Tel Aviv, Israel, in 2011, and an AltaSea tenant. It has developed a patented, cost-efficient technology for turning ocean waves into green electricity.

The two-year project at the wharf near AltaSea will undergo construction beginning immediately, with the preparations expected to be complete in the second quarter of 2025.

It will be the first U.S. onshore wave energy project, co-invested by Shell Marine Renewable Energy.

“This permit is a major step for EcoWave Power’s U.S. expansion,” said EcoWave CEO Inna Braverman in a written statement.

Wave energy has a potential to generate over 1,400 terawatt-hours per year, according to supporters of the technology, which would be enough to power 130 million homes.