PacWave Inks ‘Historic’ US Wave Power Purchase Deal
PacWave, administered by Oregon State University, has signed a power purchase agreement with the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), paving the way for wave-generated electricity to be supplied to the U.S. grid for the first time.
The agreement marks a major step for CalWave, which will deploy its xWave technology at the PacWave test site. The company said the project represents its move from research and development into commercial operations after previously exporting power only to a microgrid at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography during a 2021–22 open-ocean deployment.
The five-year agreement, running from 2026 to 2030, enables BPA to purchase up to 20 MW of energy per hour from OSU. PacWave’s offshore test site does not always operate at full capacity, but the arrangement provides a market-based commercial framework for up to 20 MW of power. Central Lincoln PUD will deliver grid connection services through the Utility Connection & Monitoring Facility between Seal Rock and Waldport.
CalWave said the PPA signals early commercial demand for wave-energy technology at a time when much of the sector remains focused on cost reduction. The company’s prior San Diego deployment operated 67% longer than planned with no downtime and no performance decline.
Construction of the grid-connected PacWave site began in 2021, including the installation of four subsea export cables linking the onshore facility to a test area seven miles off the central Oregon coast. Each cable is rated at 5 MW and serves one of four test berths, allowing multiple developers to operate simultaneously. PacWave can supply up to 20 MW of power, enough to serve roughly 10,000 homes.
The project has been supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Oregon State University and the Pacific Marine Energy Center (PMEC), as the wave energy sector works toward commercial scale and investment readiness.