Technology

Most people have at some stage wondered how the power of ocean waves can be turned into useful electricity. The ocean surface's enormous power is obvious as it moves up and down, and back and forth. Harnessing this power appears simple. However, a reliable and economic way to do this has not been developed yet.  
 
The challenges are:
The ocean environment is highly corrosive to metals. During storms, waves contain enough energy to destroy some types of wave power systems.
Wave direction changes, and is mixed in some cases. By way of contrast, for wind power, the wind only blows in one direction at one time.
Bringing the electricity onshore is extremely expensive. In some places there are high tides, while in other places there are strong currents.
Some places have small waves and shallow water, while other places may have deep water and a larger wave height.
Strict environmental requirements must be met.  
 
In the light these challenges, it is likely that two or three different technologies will emerge in future, each with special features suited to specific wave climates, rather than one single technology dominating the market.