Spanish engineering company IDOM is demonstrating how ocean waves could become a viable source of clean electricity through its floating wave energy converter, MARMOK-A-5. Recently redeployed off the coast of Bilbao at the Biscay Marine Energy Platform, the 42-metre steel buoy represents one of the world’s most advanced experiments in wave-powered infrastructure. The system operates using Oscillating Water Column (OWC) technology. As waves move the floating structure, water rises and falls inside a cylindrical chamber, compressing and decompressing air within the buoy. This airflow drives a turbine that converts wave motion into electricity, which is then transmitted ashore through subsea cables. Unlike fossil-fuel infrastructure, MARMOK works with natural ocean rhythms rather than extracting finite resources.
What makes the project significant is both its engineering and resilience-by-design. The buoy has survived Atlantic waves of up to 14 metres over multiple winters, proving the durability of floating renewable infrastructure in extreme marine environments. As cities rethink their energy futures, MARMOK-A-5 explores the oceans surrounding us as sources of clean energy generation.
