Day 1 of MRAS 2018 opened with a keynote presentation from Mr. Harris Yahya, Director, Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Indonesia which paved the way for several prominent speakers to share their research and ideas at the conference.

Mr. Yann-Herve De Roeck, Vice Chair of Ocean Energy Systems (OES), IEA, presented the role of OES, a brief roadmap for the ocean renewable energy industry, modelling and validation requirements to support wave energy technology and ocean energy policies around the world. Particular emphasis was placed on the development of ocean energy in Indonesia by Dr. Mukhtasor, Chairman of the National Energy Council of Indonesia. In his compelling presentation, Dr. Mukhtasor emphasized the need to bridge the gap between promise and delivery in ocean renewable energy technologies, which would allow Indonesia to embrace them with greater confidence. Dr. Yakob, Professor at UTM, Malaysia complemented Dr. Mukhtasor’s presentation by demonstrating the progress in neighbouring Malaysia. Lab scale energy devices currently being developed at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) garnered significant attention in Dr. Yakob’s presentation which ended with a summary of challenges confronting the industry in tropical regions. 

Mr. Henry Han, CEO of Hann-Ocean Energy, demonstrated the capabilities of Drakoo WEC to the audience. The particular efficacy of Drakoo in Indonesian waters was highlighted using wave flux and return on investment data for potential investors. The audience was also treated to a live video demonstration of Drakoo being tested at our HOENT premises in China. 

Mr. Shigeki Nagaya from IHI Corporation, Mr. Palaniappan Ravindran  from ClassNK, Dr. Abu Bakar Jaafar from UTM and several other stalwarts of academia and the industry set the pace for the rest of the event on day 1 of MRAS 2018.