Dutch plan floating islands powered by waves and tides

Maritime Research Institute Netherlands (MARIN) has tested the concept for floating mega island which could be powered by tidal and wave energy.

During this week MARIN tested an innovative concept for a floating mega island that comprises 87 large floating triangles that are flexibly connected to one another.

Together they form a flexible floating island that can be as large as 1 to 5 km in cross-section, offering future-proof living and working space at sea for developing, generating, storing, and maintaining sustainable energy, including offshore wind, tidal and wave energy, and floating solar panels, among other uses.

Olaf Waals, Project Manager and the concept developer, said: “As sea level rises, cities become overcrowded and more activities are carried out at sea, raising the dikes and reclaiming land from the seas are perhaps no longer an effective solution. An innovative alternative that fits with the Dutch maritime tradition is floating ports and cities.”

The floating islands will also be suitable for use with loading and transshipping cargo in coastal areas where there is little infrastructure, for cultivating food, such as seaweed and fish, and building houses and recreation close to the water, MARIN said.

MARIN is carrying out the research using computer simulations and model tests in its Offshore Basin capable of simulating wind, waves and currents at scale.