ORECon, the Devon-based developer of a device to harness energy from waves, has received $24 million (£12.1 million) from a syndicate of European and US venture capital houses. Led by Advent Venture Partners, the syndicate also includes Venrock, Wellington Partners and Northzone Ventures.

ORECon, the Devon-based developer of a device to harness energy from waves, has received $24 million (£12.1 million) from a syndicate of European and US venture capital houses. Led by Advent Venture Partners, the syndicate also includes Venrock, Wellington Partners and Northzone Ventures.

The funding will be used to build and deploy a full-scale device using ORECon’s proprietary system of multiple wave chambers of differing depths integrated into a single buoy. The company then plans a commercial roll-out of the technology, which it claims improves the efficiency of power generation.

CEO David Crisp says: ‘The funding will enable us to aggressively exploit our patented technology and position it as a viable competitor to fossil fuel generation.’

Peter Baines, general partner at Advent, comments: ‘ORECon is that rare breed: a combination of an exciting vision for the future, an innovative technology and an experienced entrepreneurial team to turn this vision into reality.’

Advent Venture Partners, Northzone and Wellington Partners are based in Europe. Venrock, originally established as the venture arm of the Rockefeller family, has offices in the US and Israel.