Where do we sit., page-2

A really good question SWM.

I will list some of the so called competitors, even though I don't think of them as such:

- Fossil fuel power generators i.e. coal, gas, diesel.
- Nuclear power generators
- Hydrogen fuel power generators
- Fuel cells
- Other renewable energy technologies
- Conventional desalination
- Conventional fresh water storage facilities, i.e. dams, weirs, reservoirs, etc.

The reason I don't see them as competitors, is that I don't believe that wave energy will replace any of them, (not in their entirety at least).

Instead, I think of wave energy, (and for that matter, any other type of renewable energy), as having a role that will augment or enhance the operation of any of the above utilities and help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions within certain limits.

A possible exception would be for remote locations, where diesel power generation and conventional desalination could be completely done away with and replaced by hybrid renewable technology. In such cases, economic and security aspects would weigh more heavily.

CWE seem to have set a course, to want to fill the gaps that conventional large scale and small scale energy and freshwater utilities can't do in a carbon constrained world.

The Western Australian government would appear to be receptive to the types of services that CWE can provide. They seem to want microgrid technology to play a significant role, (especially in edge of grid and remote localities), to provide power, (perhaps water as well), in locations they have difficulty servicing.

I believe too many people think of the energy revolution as being a stark choice between either fossil fuel, or renewable energy. That should not be the case, both will have a role.

We don't want CWE to take over the world, we just want it to give a hand.