Wave power specialist Mocean Energy has made two key board appointments as it prepares for a further round of funding to bring in “high impact” investors in the next 12 to 18 months.
The money will support commercialisation of the Edinburgh-based company’s Blue Star wave machine, which provides power for subsea facilities. The Blue Star technology was successfully trialled last year at sea in Orkney and is now at the centre of a collaborative initiative to see how it can be coupled with underwater energy management and storage.
Oil and energy industry veteran Torger Skillingstad has joined Mocean as chairman, while angel investor Lynne Ross has taken a non-executive post on the board of directors. Both appointees are existing investors in the company and Ms Ross will represent Equity Gap, Mocean’s lead investor, on the board.
Mr Skillingstad was chief executive of Resman Wireless Reservoir Surveillance and saw it through investment from Equinor Ventures before being acquired by Nordic Capital in 2015. Ms Ross has considerable experience with early-stage businesses and was formerly head of climate change policy at energy giant SSE.
Co-founded in 2015 by Cameron McNatt and Chris Retzler, Mocean has raised a total of £8 million to date through a combination of private investment and grant funding. This includes £730,000 raised in March of this year in a funding round supported by existing investors led by Equity Gap.
Mr McNatt, managing director of Mocean, said the new board members are joining at a “very exciting time” for the company.
“Mocean Energy’s technology roadmap aligns well with many energy companies’ net zero transition plans and we are carrying out desk-based projects now leading to offshore deployment of our Blue Star technology in 2024 to reduce the carbon footprint of our customers,” he said. “To deliver our ambitions, we need to scale.
“Torger and Lynne have been long-time believers in Mocean. Both bring immense experience in supporting technology pioneers on their growth journey, and I am confident they will help us bring impact and corporate investors on board as we work towards growth and delivering our vision.”
