Wave Power Project in Mauritius selected for METI subsidy programs

October 10, 2021

~MOL’s Unique Business to Contribute to Society and the Environment in Mauritius~

MOL announced that its proposed wave power project in Mauritius was selected for Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) subsidy programs.

Selector	Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry
Name of program	Subsidy to research feasibility of business operation with the aim to develop overseas high-quality energy infrastructure (Research to promote infrastructure overseas development by Japanese corporations: Secondary public offering)
Selected theme	Research program for feasibility of business operation program, related to wave power, using digital transformation (DX) in Mauritius
Proposers	MOL
Program partners	Bombora Wave Power Pty Ltd, Japan Development Institute

Wave power is one of ocean renewable energies ^{(Note 1)}, which have not been comercialized in full scale yet, but in some regions of Europe and the U.S., large-scale demonstration tests and commercialization projects using subsidies are moving.

MOL has conducted natural environmental protection/recovery projects and social contribution activiites ^{(Note 2)} since the incident that its chartered bulk carrier, Wakashio, was grounded off Mauritius in July 2020.

In addition, since Mauritius draws up a roadmap to raise percentage of renewable energy to 35% or 40% by 2030, and positions wave power as one of the future power source, MOL reached to make the proposal of the program for contribution to the nation’s environmental strategy.

MOL entered into an agreement with Bombora Wave Power Pty Ltd of the U.K. to evaluate the prospects of the wave energy business in Japan and Asia in January 2021 ^{(Note 3)}. Both companies are conducting research to identify wave energy potential, using Bombora’s unique mWave™ energy converter and site selection with consideration for the natural environment by using digital technology, geographic information system (GIS) in Mauritius.

Through this project, MOL will further forge ahead “Expanding Low-Carbon and Decarbonization Projects through Use of the MOL Group’s Concentrated Strengths^(Fig.1),” one of the initiatives to achieve MOL Group Environmental Vision 2.1 ^{(Note 4)}, and aim to contribute to Mauritius society and the environment.