Archive · 20 Sep 2025
Osmotic Energy: A Promising New Renewable Source
Imagine getting electricity from where rivers meet the sea!
This new idea uses the difference in how salty the water is to make power.
Special pipes channel freshwater and seawater, and a special membrane creates electricity.
This can provide a constant stream of energy that's available everywhere rivers meet the ocean.
Researchers have been working on this for a while and the technology is now being tested.
The goal is to make electricity cheaper than other renewable sources to power cities.
It could even help with getting fresh water and resources from the ocean!
Osmotic power uses the salinity difference between river and seawater to generate electricity.
The technology is a steady, carbon-free source of renewable energy.
A pilot project is underway in the Rhône estuary in France.
Osmotic systems could potentially generate nearly a fifth of global electricity needs.
The technology could enhance water management and resource extraction.
- Who
- Companies like Sweetch Energy and SaltPower, along with researchers
- What
- Development of osmotic power systems to generate electricity from salinity differences.
- When
- Pilot projects began in late 2024; research since the 1950s.
- Where
- Rhône estuary in France, Japan (Fukuoka), and potential sites in North America and Asia.
- Why
- To create a steady, carbon-free renewable energy source.
- Technology Type
- Osmotic Energy
- Energy Source
- Difference in salinity between river and seawater
- Key Advantage
- Steady, carbon-free, and naturally available
- First Pilot Site
- Rhône estuary, France (OPUS-1)
- Potential Electricity Generation (Rhône Estuary)
- 500 megawatts
- Worldwide Potential
- Up to nearly a fifth of global electricity needs
- Current Commercialization Stage
- Pilot projects and research
- Target Cost (Sweetch Energy)
- €100 per megawatt hour by 2030