Understanding the Grid Value Proposition of Marine Energy: A Literature Review

This document is a literature review in support of a Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and National Renewable Energy Laboratory technical project to understand and quantify the potential grid value of marine energy-derived electricity generation. This review catalogs and summarizes relevant publications that indicate marine energy resource locations and availability (duration and magnitude) as relevant to evaluating grid value; the variety of energy converter devices and their performance characteristics, by marine resource; whether and to what degree marine energy installations can earn revenue or offer benefits to the electric system; and the state of research on assessing and quantifying relevant electric system benefits that do not have a traditional form of procurement or price. The purpose of this review is to establish a knowledge baseline relevant to the project, to identify gaps, avoid redundancy, foster collaboration, and leverage methods and data to the extent possible. Key findings of the review are indicated in the Executive Summary.