France joins Ocean Energy Systems

France has become the latest member country of the Ocean Energy Systems Technology Collaboration Programme (OES).

OES is an intergovernmental collaboration between countries, which operates under framework established by the International Energy Agency in Paris, launched in 2001.

France has become the 24th member-country of OES, joining the organization on September 21, 2016.

The OES brings together countries to advance research, development and demonstration of conversion technologies to harness energy from all forms of ocean renewable resources, such as tides, waves, currents, ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC), submarine geothermal energy, and salinity gradient for electricity generation, through international cooperation and information exchange.

The contracting party for France is France Energies Marines, according to OES.

A contracting party is appointed by national government to represent it on the OES Executive Committee (ExCo). It can be a government ministry or agency, a research institute or university, an industry association or even a private company.

ExCo is the decision making body of OEA, comprised of all the participants, responsible for managing the OES work program.