CETO deployment enters final stretch as assembly and foundation work wraps up
Carnegie Clean Energy (ASX: CCE) has confirmed the next phase of its ACHIEVE Programme is imminent, with Buoyant Actuator deployment at Spain’s BiMEP facility scheduled to commence in October 2026. The update marks a key step on CETO’s commercialisation pathway, validating three years of intensive project-specific design and construction work in a real-world, grid-connected environment.
Three concurrent workstreams are now converging toward that milestone. Foundation preparations have been completed and are ready for deployment, Buoyant Actuator fabrication is nearing completion in the Basque Country, and power take-off (PTO) module assembly is actively underway with supply chain partners.
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Upcoming ACHIEVE programme milestones at a glance
- Foundation structures: Finishing touches completed and ready for deployment at BiMEP.
- Buoyant Actuator: Fabrication nearing completion in the Basque Country. The modular design has been configured to simplify both fabrication and transport, removing the need for significant traffic management when moving the structure to port.
- PTO modules: Assembly underway with supply chain partners. Interface challenges between suppliers were encountered and resolved by the technical team, delivering valuable learnings from the “first ever CETO rotary electric power take-off system built.”
- October 2026: Buoyant Actuator deployment at BiMEP commencing as Stage 1 of the ACHIEVE Programme’s staged deployment, commissioning, and testing sequence.
What is the ACHIEVE programme and why does it matter for wave energy investors
The ACHIEVE Programme is a multi-funder initiative backing CETO’s grid-connected prototype deployment at the Biscay Marine Energy Platform (BiMEP), an open-ocean test facility located in Spain’s Basque Country. Real-world performance data collected at BiMEP will be used to validate CETO technology.
Three funding streams support the programme:
- EuropeWave: Combines over €22.5 million of national, regional, and EU funding via the Horizon 2020 programme.
- Spanish Government: Funding awarded through the RENMARINAS Demos Programme.
- Basque Government: A grant from the Ente Vasco de la Energía (EVE).
For investors, this structure is meaningful. External public funding reduces Carnegie’s capital exposure while the BiMEP test environment generates independently validated performance data — a critical precondition for commercial-scale project development.
A bridging loan facility of $3.5 million is currently in place to cover procurement costs incurred ahead of milestone payment receipts, with repayment expected from ACHIEVE Programme milestones and R&D tax incentives as the deployment progresses.
The broader policy backdrop reinforces the opportunity.
EU Ocean Energy Targets (EuropeWave / European Commission)
The European Commission has set targets of 100MW of ocean energy by 2027 and at least 1GW by 2030 — the policy framework against which CETO’s BiMEP deployment is being delivered.
Staged deployment roadmap: what comes next
The ACHIEVE Programme follows a defined two-stage offshore sequence:
- Stage 1 (October 2026): The completed Buoyant Actuator is transported to port and deployed at BiMEP.
- In parallel: PTO module onshore testing commences at a nearby facility to commission the power-generating assembly prior to its offshore integration.
- Stage 2: The PTO module is deployed offshore and integrated following successful onshore commissioning.
Data collected across both stages will be used to validate CETO’s performance and, in Carnegie’s own words, “propel it along the commercialisation pathway.” Successful deployment and testing at an open-ocean, grid-connected site would reduce technology risk for future commercial-scale projects — a material consideration for investors assessing CETO’s long-term commercial readiness.
The US wave energy market represents a parallel growth vector for Carnegie beyond the BiMEP programme, with the opening of PacWave South off Oregon providing a pre-permitted, grid-connected test pathway against a resource estimated at 1,400 TWh per year across the US Exclusive Economic Zone.
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