Tidal Power Test Off New Jersey
Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) has successfully deployed its tidal energy device, the PB40 PowerBuoy, off the coast of New Jersey in the U.S.
The device is moored approximately 30 nautical miles southeast of the New York City Harbor and weighs 130 tons, is 110 feet in length and operates in 45 meters or more of water.
This latest OPT’s device incorporates new design features including a high voltage electric power generation, distribution and management system as well as an advanced energy storage system to provide autonomous power for offshore applications.
The PB40 will operate at this location for one year during which performance and wave data will be collected and transmitted to its monitoring and analysis center at OPT headquarters in Pennington, New Jersey.
In addition, OPT anticipates deploying its APB350 A1 PowerBuoy later this summer and also readying its APB350 A2 PowerBuoy for deployment by the end of 2015.
George H. Kirby, President and Chief Executive Officer of OPT commented, "We are very proud of this achievement and we look forward to assessing the buoy's performance which will provide an important step in furthering our discussions with customers in our target markets. Our goal is to bring reliable, cost-effective offshore power solutions to markets that will provide viable alternatives to higher-cost solutions and enable many new customer applications that are currently not available."
Kirby continued, “The A2 design includes an optimized hull geometry for improved wave energy extraction as well as reduced fabrication, transportation and deployment costs. PB10 will provide significantly more power generation capacity with a nominal increase in weight for applications requiring greater power. I am very excited about the progress we are making on our commercialization plan as we remain focused on our vision of transforming the world through innovative ocean energy solutions."