Ocean Wave Power : Commericial Deployment Near

March 12, 2006 – Vol.10 No.51

OCEAN WAVE POWER: COMMERCIAL DEPLOYMENT NEAR.

The development of a reliable, durable, cost-effective ocean energy technology may be the most difficult of all renewable energy power generation schemes. The immense power of ocean waves, the highly corrosive nature of salt water and salt-laden air and the possible hazards to shipping and marine life all add to the difficulty of developing a suitable technology.

But with two thirds of the planet covered with the constantly-moving, energy-storing oceans, ocean energy is certainly worth pursuing. It could be the biggest renewable energy prize of all.

One technology is making headway.

The world’s first order for a commercial wave energy farm is being shipped from Ocean Power Delivery in Scotland. The first of three Pelamis 750-kilowatt P1A devices has left the production shop in Scotland and is on its way to Northern Portugal for sea trials and deployment by this summer.

Two other P1A devices will be shipped in April and May respectively. The 2.25 megawatt wave farm will be about 3 miles (5 kilometers) offshore.

Once the first three machines are installed and commissioned, OPD will move ahead to supply an additional 28 Pelamis machines to bring the project total up to almost 24-megawatts capacity.

Each Pelamis device includes four main cylindrical tube sections hinged together with three power units. The up and down motion of the cylinders in the waves moves hydraulic pistons in each power unit. The pumping action of the pistons pressurizes fluid to turn a hydraulic dynamo to generate electricity. Power is cabled under the sea bed to shore.

OPD is pursuing possible opportunities for two more wave energy farms, one off the coast of the Scotland, the other off England.

Ocean wave technology might prove a better bet for the United States than offshore wind. The devices can’t be seen from shore, thus oceanfront property owners would put up less resistance. Commercial fishing, ocean commerce and recreational boaters might object, however.

Though OPD hasn’t openly discussed a next generation Pelamis, certainly behind closed doors the conversations must be there. Instead of steel cylinders, is composite plastic a possibility? What about full scale mass production - molded cylinders - that could drop the cost of Pelamis?

Visit OPD at http://www.oceanpd.com/