Power from the Sea - And Cheap !

http://www.wavedragon.net/technology/principles.htm

The basic idea of the Wave Dragon wave energy converter is to use well-known and well-proven principles from traditional hydropower plants in an offshore floating platform.

The Wave Dragon overtopping device elevates ocean waves to a reservoir above sea level where water is let out through a number of turbines and in this way transformed into electricity.
Wave energy converters often make use of either mechanical motion or fluid pressure and there are numerous techniques for achieving it, e.g. oscillating water/air columns, hinged rafts, gyroscopic/hydraulic devices. Wave Dragon does not have any conversion but uses the energy in the water directly.
Wave Dragon is a very simple construction and has only one kind of moving parts: the turbines. This is essential for any device bound for operating offshore where the extreme forces and fouling etc seriously affect any moving parts.
Wave Dragon is a floating device that is supposed to stay as stationary as possible. It doesn't convert wave to energy by popping up and down or by some parts being moved by the motion of the waves. It simply utilizes the potential energy in the water that overtops it.

Like a dam:
The water overtopping Wave Dragon is stored temporarily in a large reservoir creating a head, i.e. the difference between the "normal" level of the water surface and the water surface in the reservoir. This water is let out of the Wave Dragon reservoir through several turbines and thus generating electricity like in hydro power plants.
Power generation on the Wave Dragon is based on the potential energy in the water that has overtopped the ramp and is temporarily stored in the reservoir. This reservoir contains approximately 8,000 m3 water that has to be let out through the turbines in between two waves.
Wave Dragon uses traditional hydro propeller turbines with fixed gate vanes, which is a mature and well proven technology that has been used in hydro power plants for more than 80 years.

The energy in wave motions is extremely powerful. This is exactly what is exploited in a wave energy converter but is also a constant threat to any structure and mechanic device. Several critical aspects have been addressed in designing Wave Dragon.
A slack-moored system traditionally used for mooring ships will be used to absorb forces from the Wave Dragon rig resulting form the exposure to waves and wind.
Extreme waves will not be a problem. Model tests have shown that height waves simply run over the rig.
Extreme wind will not be a major problem as Wave Dragon floats relatively low and is not exposed to the wind.

As calculated by the Royal Academy of Engineering in its recent report on electricity generation costs, for most of Europe, and the Northern coasts of North America, power should be able to be generated at a cost of five cents per kwh, or less.