The first large site in the continental U.S. for testing technologies that generate electricity from ocean waves is now open after securing a key green-energy approval from the Trump administration.
The federal approval is notable because President Donald Trump has created massive hurdles for clean energy, particularly offshore wind. His government has implemented policies that slow energy permitting and development, canceled billions in grants for hundreds of clean energy projects and spent nearly $4 billion to buy back leases to stop offshore wind projects. But Trump officials see promise in harnessing the power of the ocean’s waves.
Companies can now bring wave energy technologies off the coast of Oregon to PacWave South to test their ability to generate power in the open ocean and deliver it to the local grid. The goal is to advance an industry that’s still in its infancy but has enormous potential for cleanly generating large amounts of electricity.
Oregon State University developed the test facility. After Trump returned to office in 2025, PacWave had to pass a “go/no-go” review at the Energy Department that required approval by the energy secretary to open, PacWave Director Dan Hellin said. Hellin said the approval came through last summer and they connected to the grid this summer.
But the facility has yet to generate any electricity because no wave energy devices have arrived, with developers facing delays in federal funding.
Marine energy refers to power generated from tides, currents or waves
The Department of Energy has invested nearly $150 million since 2016 in the facility’s siting and construction costs. The university is marking the facility’s opening Thursday in an invitation-only event.
Bringing PacWave South online will help streamline the testing and permitting process that has held back marine energy for decades, an Energy Department spokesperson said in a statement.
Burning coal, oil and natural gas for electricity emits carbon dioxide, trapping heat in the atmosphere and warming the planet. By contrast, marine energy is carbon-free.
It has the potential to power about 57% of U.S. electrical needs, according to federal estimates. The Energy Department says that even if only a small portion of this is captured, marine energy technologies would make significant contributions to America’s energy system.
The department also says the wave energy devices that will be tested at the PacWave site can enhance national security, in contrast to its characterization of wind energy. The administration has worked to stop offshore wind development on the grounds that it’s a national security risk since late last year.
The Energy Department said that technologies that convert wave energy to electricity are “uniquely suited to provide power sources for national security applications.” Those could include remote sensors, autonomous underwater vehicles and other equipment that requires persistent, low-visibility power in remote and sensitive offshore and coastal environments, as well as power resiliency for forward military bases.
Developers can bring several types of wave energy converters there
The PacWave South site in Oregon isn’t the first grid-connected wave energy test site in the nation — the U.S. Navy has one in Hawaii — but it’s the first to be connected to the continental U.S. grid. It’s also “pre-permitted,” which means developers can bring several types of wave energy converters there without having to acquire permits on their own for testing, saving them time and money. Those include point absorbers, oscillating water columns and attenuators.
“When you’re developing this technology, ultimately you have to get to that stage of full-scale open water testing, connected to the grid. And that’s the real bottleneck for the global industry, the fact that there’s very few facilities like this,” Hellin said.
A point absorber is the most common type. These buoy-like devices move up and down, converting the motion of waves into electricity. An oscillating water column uses the rise and fall of waves to push and pull air through a turbine to generate electricity. An attenuator is a long, floating device. As its sections flex with the motion of the waves, that movement is converted into electricity. These devices use subsea cables to connect to the grid to supply that electricity to shore.
Facts Only
* A large site in the continental U.S. for testing ocean wave energy technologies is open following a green-energy approval from the Trump administration.
* President Donald Trump implemented policies that slowed energy permitting and development, canceled clean energy grants, and spent nearly $4 billion to buy back offshore wind leases.
* Companies can test wave energy technologies off the coast of Oregon at PacWave South to generate power in the open ocean and deliver it to the local grid.
* Oregon State University developed the test facility.
* PacWave required a "go/no-go" review at the Energy Department for approval by the energy secretary to open.
* The approval came through last summer, and connection to the grid occurred this summer.
* The facility has not generated electricity because wave energy devices have not arrived, with developers facing federal funding delays.
* The Department of Energy invested nearly $150 million since 2016 in the facility’s siting and construction costs.
* Marine energy refers to power generated from tides, currents, or waves.
* Wave energy technologies are not limited to offshore wind testing; developers can bring point absorbers, oscillating water columns, and attenuators.
* The Energy Department stated that wave energy technologies are uniquely suited for national security applications, such as powering remote sensors and autonomous underwater vehicles.
Executive Summary
A large site in the continental U.S. for testing ocean wave energy technologies is open after receiving an approval from the Trump administration. This federal approval occurred despite policies implemented by the administration that have generally slowed clean energy development, such as permitting restrictions and canceled grants. The facility, PacWave South in Oregon, allows companies to test power generation from open ocean waves and deliver that power to the local grid. The testing involves various wave energy converters, including point absorbers, oscillating water columns, and attenuators.
The facility was developed by Oregon State University and received nearly $150 million in Department of Energy investment for siting and construction costs since 2016. While the site is connected to the grid, it has not yet generated electricity due to delays in receiving wave energy devices from developers. The testing aims to advance an industry with potential for generating large amounts of clean electricity, which could meet about 57% of U.S. electrical needs.
The Department of Energy views these technologies as beneficial for national security, suggesting that wave energy conversion devices are uniquely suited for providing power to remote and sensitive offshore environments. Developers can test multiple converter types at this site, offering a streamlined pathway for open-water testing compared to previous processes.
Full Take
The narrative presents a juxtaposition between an administration known for imposing significant regulatory hurdles on clean energy development and the current pursuit of a novel, large-scale energy technology like wave power. This highlights a tension between broad policy direction—which actively resisted offshore wind expansion—and specific technological advancement that is now being enabled through targeted, albeit delayed, federal approval.
The key pattern here involves reframing a new technology to serve established security concerns. The Department of Energy explicitly links wave energy devices to national security applications for remote sensing and military power resiliency, contrasting this with the administration's stance on offshore wind development. This suggests a strategic pivot where the perception of clean energy infrastructure shifts from purely environmental benefit to national security utility.
The bottleneck identified is not the technological feasibility of wave energy, but the systemic inertia in permitting and funding—the historical drag mentioned as holding back marine energy for decades. The fact that the site is "pre-permitted" allows developers to bypass some initial bureaucratic barriers, yet the actual realization of potential remains stalled by external funding delays. This setup suggests that while policy can create opportunities (the approval), implementation requires overcoming entrenched institutional inertia and securing the necessary financial flow, regardless of perceived national security alignment.
What challenges does this dynamic imply about future energy transitions? If infrastructure development is contingent on specific political alignments, how resistant are novel energy solutions to the same bureaucratic friction regardless of their inherent potential? What mechanisms exist to ensure that specialized testing sites like PacWave South move past the 'testing' phase into grid-connected deployment once device availability is secured?
Sentinel — Human
The text presents a factual report on a specific energy testing facility while contextualizing it within broader policy debates regarding clean energy and national security, showing human analytical structuring.