Marine energy resources could be crucial in meeting the increased demand for clean electricity. To enable the use of marine energy resources, developing efficient and durable offshore electrical systems is vital. Currently, there are no large-scale commercial projects with marine energy resources, and the question of how to design such electrical systems is still not settled. A natural starting point in investigating this is to draw on experiences and research from offshore wind power. This article reviews different collection grid topologies and key components for AC and DC grid structures. The review covers aspects such as the type of components, operation and estimated costs of commercially available components. A DC collection grid can be especially suitable for offshore marine energy resources, since the transmission losses are expected to be lower, and the electrical components could possibly be made smaller. Therefore, five DC collection grid topologies are proposed and qualitatively evaluated for marine energy resources using submerged and non-submerged marine energy converters. The properties, advantages and disadvantages of the proposed topologies are discussed, and it is concluded that a suitable electrical system for a marine energy farm will most surely be based on a site-specific techno-economic analysis.

The electrification of remote islands has long been a subject of research interest, primarily because of their historical reliance on fossil fuels, leading to a significant carbon footprint. Recent advancements in wave energy converters offer a promising avenue to make these islands more self‐sustainable while considerably reducing carbon emissions. However, the persistent issue of voltage dips due to weaker grids continues to pose a challenge. This study introduces a multi‐mode converter control strategy with the goal of electrifying remote islands, employing a linear generator‐based wave energy converter in a unified electrical model. Various scenarios, including voltage dips and mainland grid disconnection, are simulated using MATLAB/Simulink. The study demonstrates the converter's ability to transition swiftly and smoothly in response to these scenarios, ensuring an uninterrupted power supply. Furthermore, the analysis indicates that the power quality at the point of common coupling remains well within acceptable standards.

As the world transitions toward renewable electrification to reduce CO₂ emissions, remote island electrification remains a challenge. While some islands are grid-connected, many still rely on fossil fuels for electricity generation. Several studies indicate that renewable energy sources, such as wave energy, have the potential to make these islands self-reliant due to their substantial power potential. However, research on the control of power electronics converters for these systems remains limited. This paper proposes isolated grid-forming control for island electrification to address this gap using a wave energy converter and an energy storage system. Resistive loading control is implemented to optimize the power absorption from the generator. The result illustrates the establishment of the required AC voltage and 50 Hz frequency in the island load, ensuring harmonics compliance with the recommended standards. Experiments were conducted to test and validate the operation of different converter controls. The results also demonstrate the converter’s ability to black-start the island load and automatically transition the load current with varying loads in a few milliseconds. Furthermore, the power quality produced by the wave energy converter presents one of its significant challenges. Therefore, the performances of two distinct converter technologies were compared. The performance of the IGBT converter was evaluated against that of the SiC-based converter in terms of power quality. The study demonstrates that the use of SiC enhances power quality across all the tested switching frequencies, achieving the greatest reduction of 78% in current THD and 92% in voltage THD at 25 kHz switching frequency, thereby validating its advantages for wave energy converter applications.