The Hybrid Energy Future: Bombora’s Floating Wind-Wave Power Breakthrough

Offshore renewable energy is entering uncharted waters—literally. Bombora Wave Power, a leader in wave energy technology, has completed a critical phase of tank testing for a radical hybrid system that merges wave and wind power on a single floating platform. The tests, conducted at the University of Edinburgh’s FloWave facility, mark a major step toward unlocking the untapped potential of combined ocean energy.

Riding the Waves—and the Wind

Bombora’s mWave™ technology, a membrane-based wave energy converter, has been paired with a 10 MW wind turbine on a semi-submersible platform as part of the InSPIRE Project. The recent tank tests simulated extreme ocean conditions to evaluate structural loads and dynamic responses, ensuring the system can withstand real-world storms. This follows a pre-FEED (Front-End Engineering Design) phase completed in 2022, which laid the groundwork for the hybrid concept.

“Shared infrastructure means shared costs—and that’s the key to making ocean energy competitive,” says a Bombora spokesperson.

From Lab to Ocean

While the FloWave tests validate the engineering, Bombora is already preparing for real-world deployment. Its £20 million Pembrokeshire Demonstration Project will push mWave to Technology Readiness Levels (TRL) 7/8, a critical milestone for commercial viability. If successful, the project could prove that wave energy—long seen as a niche player—can complement wind power at scale.

The timing couldn’t be better. According to the Global Wind Energy Council, floating wind capacity is expected to exceed 16 GW by 2030. By integrating wave energy into these projects, Bombora aims to maximize energy output per square kilometer of ocean while slashing costs through shared infrastructure. The company’s target? A game-changing Levelised Cost of Energy (LCOE) of €60/MWh at commercial scale.

Europe’s Wave of Support

Bombora isn’t going it alone. The EuropeWave Programme, backed by nearly €20 million in funding, is accelerating the development of wave energy across the continent. Alongside Bombora’s tests, two other prototypes are being evaluated at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in Orkney and the Biscay Marine Energy Platform (BiMEP) in Spain. The goal: prove that wave energy can graduate from pilot projects to grid-scale reality.

As climate targets tighten and offshore wind expands, Bombora’s hybrid approach could redefine how we harness the ocean’s power. The waves are coming—and they might just bring the wind with them.