Some 70% of the Earth is covered by oceans. As a result, taking care of them and keeping them clean has a very large impact on our planet.

Moreover, it appears that the vast amount of seawater on Earth could become an important resource for us. First, in the wake of the development of more environmentally friendly, low-cost methods of desalination, oceans can become an unlimited supply of water for drinking and other uses for the very large number of people who are facing water shortages.

Scientists recently were able to produce green hydrogen using saltwater. With green hydrogen becoming a very important energy source, it’s good to know that we will not have to tap into our limited freshwater supplies to utilize this important, new energy source. Now that you understand more about the high value of our oceans, here are three top ocean tech stocks to buy.

Ocean Power Technologies (OPTT)

The top offering of Ocean Power Technologies (NYSE:OPTT) is called PB3 Power Buoy. PB3 creates renewable electricity using the movement of ocean waves. With the demand for renewable energy jumping amid governments’ carbon reduction mandates and the advent of electric vehicles, Ocean Power may have a very bright future, making it one of the top ocean tech stocks.

Encouragingly, its second-quarter revenue came in at $1.3 million in the second quarter, up from $700,000 versus the same period a year earlier. Moreover, OPTT generated a gross profit of $700,000 in Q2, versus a gross profit of just $2000,000 in the same quarter of 20222.

Also noteworthy is that the firm announced in September that it had won three contracts from the U.S. federal government’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that “have the potential to result in millions of dollars of revenue.” OPTT is also partnering with the Department of Energy.

Finally, the company has a plan to become profitable in 2025.

Veolia Environnement (VEOEY)

According to Investor’s Business Daily, Veolia Environment (OTC:VEOEY) “may be the world’s largest desalination operator, with nearly 2,000 projects to its name.”

And one study has determined that the demand for “water desalination equipment” is expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 8.9% to $16.3 billion by 2031. As a result, Veolia’s desalination business is likely to grow rapidly in the coming quarters and years.

Overall, the top line of the firm’s continuing businesses jumped 10.7% in the first nine months of 2023 versus the same period a year earlier, while the EBITDA of its continuing businesses advanced 7.7% year-over-year.

Xylem (XYL)

Like Veolia, Xylem (NYSE:XYL) is well positioned to benefit from the rapid growth of desalination, as it offers “a range of scalable, low-maintenance reverse osmosis membrane filtration systems for desalinating water.”

Overall, Xylem expects its top line to jump about 32% this year in the wake of its acquisition of Evoqua, which is poised to benefit a great deal from Washington’s high infrastructure spending. XYL expects to generate earnings per share of $3.71 to $3.73.

The company’s forward price-earnings ratio is a reasonable 25.

On the date of publication, Larry Ramer did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.