French wave energy technology developer Seaturns has launched what it says is the world’s first pre-commercial offshore wave energy project, located in Mauritius.

The project in its first phase includes the installation of a 2 MW array of wave energy converters (WECs) connected to the Mauritian electricity grid, to demonstrate the industrial performance and reliability of Seaturns’ technology under real operating conditions.

An additional 8 MW of capacity might be developed, depending on the performance achieved during this pilot phase, which will bring the project’s total capacity to 10 MW.

According to Seaturns, the project represents the world’s first pre-commercial offshore deployment of a wave energy farm connected to a national electricity grid and contributes to the diversification of Mauritius’ energy mix and strengthens the security of electricity supply.

The French company, which plans to develop several commercial pilot farms by 2030, further noted that the project will help validate its technology in a real, grid-connected environment, will offer a strategic positioning in the Indian Ocean region, and will accelerate the path to commercial-scale deployment.

“Seaturns has been considering Mauritius for years, which has an important wave energy resource and is a country committed toward innovation. This project benefits from this strategic geographic position in Mauritius Island to support the development of the wave energy market across Southern Africa and the Indian Ocean,” said Lawrence Sigaud, General Manager of Seaturns in charge of Business Development.

“It also reflects Seaturns’ ambition to establish itself as the French leader in offshore wave energy, while continuing to develop its international project portfolio. Seaturns team is particularly proud to support Mauritius in its energy transition and looks forward to delivering its first commercial demonstration.”

Of note, Seaturns has been selected as a winner of the NSEPCRET Round 3 call for projects (National Scheme for Emerging Project Concepts Based on Renewable Energy Technologies), led by the Mauritius Renewable Energy Agency (MARENA), which aims to support innovative renewable energy technologies and provides a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Mauritius’ national utility Central Electricity Board (CEB).

In addition, Seaturns has started a full-scale prototype demonstration in the Atlantic Ocean in France at the end of 2025, which will continue this spring in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, in partnership with the Grand Port Maritime de Bordeaux.

The prototype will undergo testing in real sea conditions representative of future commercial projects for a minimum period of 12 months, to consolidate the technical and operational data required for industrial-scale deployment.

“This project is a perfect continuation of the full-scale trials we are conducting in 2026 and 2027; it will be the ideal technical and commercial demonstration for our future farms, and it will be a way to gain comprehensive experience throughout the lifecycle of our technology,” said Vincent Tournerie, Seaturns Founder.

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