Abstract
The European Atlantic Ocean offers a high potential for marine renewable energy
(MRE), which is targeted to be at least 32% of the EU’s gross final consumption by
2030 (European Commission, 2020 (European Commission, 2020). The European
Commission is supporting the development of the ocean energy sector through an
array of activities and policies: the Green Deal, the Energy Union, the Strategic Energy
Technology Plan (SET-Plan) and the Sustainable Blue Economy Strategy. As part of the
Green Deal, the Commission adopted the EU Offshore Renewable Energy Strategy
(European Commission, 2020) which estimates to have an installed capacity of at least
60 GW of offshore wind and at least 1 GW of ocean energy by 2030, reaching 300
GW and 40 GW of installed capacity, respectively, moving the EU towards climate
neutrality by 2050.
Another important policy initiative is the REPowerEU plan (European Commission,
2022) which the European Commission launched in response to Russia’s invasion of
Ukraine. REPowerEU plan aims to reduce the European dependence amongst Member
States on Russian energy sources, substituting fossil fuels by accelerating Europe’s
clean energy transition to a more resilient energy system and a true Energy Union. In
this context, higher renewable energy targets and additional investment, as well as
introducing mechanisms to shorten and simplify the consenting processes (i.e., ‘go-to’
areas or suitable areas designated by a Member State for renewable energy
production) will enable the EU to fully meet the REPowerEU objectives.
The nascent status of the Marine Renewable Energy (MRE) sector and Wave Energy
(WE) in particular, yields many unknowns about its potential environmental pressures
and impacts, some of them still far from being completely understood. Wave Energy
Converters’ (WECs) operation in the marine environment is still perceived by regulators
and stakeholders as a risky activity, particularly for some groups of species and
habitats.