A patentee can bring an action for infringement only once the patent has been granted.  The claim need not be restricted to acts committed after grant.  It can extend to acts which were committed before the grant but after the date of publication of the patent application.

With zero emissions, and the potential to be 100% carbon neutral, the global market for ocean energy technology is an estimated 53 billion Euros annually, and thanks to recent investment and innovation, Europe is in a great position to dominate.

While it may be an over-simplification of how science progresses, scientific history gives us many chances to ask “who did it first?” or “who discovered it first?”