The United States Secretary of Energy and Nobel Prize laureate, Dr. Steven Chu, visited the headquarters of Irish wave energy development company, Wavebob Ltd. last Friday in Maynooth, Ireland and met with CEO Andrew Parish and his team. The visit follows the recent announcement that Wavebob Ltd. had secured a grant of $2.4 million from the US Department of Energy to support the company’s ongoing technical development in the US.

Secretary Chu is a vocal advocate of research into alternative energy sources. During a tour of the Wavebob facility, Secretary Chu and Parish discussed the massive potential of the global ocean energy resource and the potential to create a large new industry in the manufacture and supply of wave energy converter technology. Secretary Chu saw a demonstration of the Wavebob wave energy converter and learned how Wavebob is progressing its commercial agenda and securing a global reputation as a leading pioneer in this emerging sector.

CEO Parish believes that the Energy Secretary’s interest in Wavebob reflects a firm commitment to developing new sources of renewable energy. “This visit by Secretary Chu is certainly a tremendous boost to our company, and is of course a very great honor. More importantly though, Dr. Chu’s visit and his Department’s grant allocation of $2.4 million shows that the US government supports our work and is aware of the significant contribution that wave energy devices could make to the US energy market.”

Wavebob Ltd. has partnered with some of the most powerful players in the US energy sector and the company has been building up a presence in the US since the establishment of its US head office in Annapolis, Maryland in 2008. The $2.4 million US Department of Energy grant was allocated from a total fund of $37 million in marine and hydrokinetic energy grants.
Also last week, Secretary Chu visited the Marine Institute of Ireland in Galway. The Marine Institute of Ireland is the national agency responsible for marine R & D in Ireland, including ocean energy.