Wave energy converter technologies continue to show
good progress in worldwide research. One of the most researched
technologies, the Oscillating Water Column (OWC), is arguably one
of the most popular categories within the converter technologies due
to its robustness, simplicity and versatility. However, the versatility
of the OWC is still largely untapped with most deployments
following similar trends with respect to applications and operating
systems. As the competitiveness of the energy market continues to
increase, the demand for wave energy technologies to be innovative
also increases. For existing wave energy technologies, this requires
identifying areas to diversify for lower costs of energy with respect to
applications and synergies or integrated systems. This paper provides
a review of all OWCs systems integrated into alternative applications
in the past and present. The aspects and variation in their design,
deployment and system operation are discussed. Particular focus is given to the Multi-OWCs (M-OWCs) and their great potential to increase capture on a larger scale, especially in synergy applications. It is made clear that these steps need to be taken in order to make wave energy a competitive and viable option in the renewable energy mix as progression to date shows that stand alone single function devices are not economical. Findings reveal that the trend of development is moving toward these integrated applications in order to reduce the Levelised Cost of Energy (LCOE) and will ultimately continue in this direction in efforts to make wave energy a competitive option in the renewable energy mix.