Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion generating continuous power from seawater for offshore applications

Dan Grech

Founder & CEO, Global OTEC

Dan Grech is the Founder and CEO of Global OTEC, a company developing a new category of renewable energy by converting ocean heat into reliable, 24/7 baseload power.

In 2015, while working in luxury fashion, Dan watched the collapse of polar ice caps in Frozen Planet and decided to redirect his career toward climate solutions. That moment led him to Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC), a technology long understood but never fully realised at commercial scale.

Where others saw technical barriers, Dan saw a timing opportunity. Rather than pursuing large, capital-intensive systems like earlier generations of OTEC developers, he focused on a modular, offshore-ready approach. The goal was simple: make OTEC deployable, scalable, and commercially relevant to real customers, not just governments and research programmes.

Since founding Global OTEC, Dan has built a team combining deep offshore engineering expertise with practical project delivery experience. Under his leadership, the company has secured backing from leading institutions, partnered with global engineering firms, and advanced projects from concept through to deployment.

Today, Global OTEC is working with some of the world’s largest energy companies to electrify offshore operations and unlock a new source of clean, baseload power for the tropics. The company’s developments include the world’s largest onshore OTEC demonstration plant and a storm-resilient floating platform designed for harsh ocean environments.

Benjamin Martin

Head of Facilities, Global OTEC

Ben has spent nearly a decade managing the Okinawa Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) Demonstration Facility with Xenesys, where he oversaw day-to-day operations, research coordination, and international collaboration. A bilingual Japanese–English speaker, he has been a key link between Japan, Hawaii, and other Asia-Pacific partners advancing OTEC and deep seawater utilisation.

Before joining Global OTEC, Benjamin supported JICA demonstration projects, coordinated events for the Okinawa–Hawaii Clean Energy Partnership, and contributed to international OTEC forums through technical papers and presentations. He brings a rare combination of operational insight, stakeholder fluency, and regional experience to the team, strengthening Global OTEC’s onshore and hybrid project development efforts across the Pacific.

Benjamin holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Arizona, majoring in Management Information Systems with a minor in Japanese.