Wave Energy PowerBuoy Generating System ($4,000,000)
This project will demonstrate a renewable wave power system at Marine Corps Base Hawaii (MCBH) that will be connected to the electrical grid.
Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. (OPT) and the U.S. Navy have collaborated to develop a new technology with the potential to generate low cost, easily deployable, and readily available electric power generation at ocean sites.
Marine Corps Base Hawaii (MCBH) utilizes up to 20 megawatts of power, which costs more than $12 million annually. Based on the high cost per kilowatt hour at many Navy bases and the projected volume-based cost of a commercial grade, one megawatt wave power system, the Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. (OPT) system's capital costs is expected to be recovered with an internal rate of return of up to 15 percent.
OPT’s first and second power units were successfully deployed and ocean tested in 2004 and 2007. The submarine cable has been laid, and the onshore grid connection has been built and tested. An exhaustive and independent environmental assessment found that the project had no significant impact on the environment.
Two additional and more efficient wave power units are currently in fabrication and will be deployed in Hawaii this year. These units will be interconnected, and their combined power will be delivered to the Marine Corps Base Hawaii grid through the submarine power cable.
Recipient: Ocean Power Technologies, Inc.
Pier 21
Honolulu, HI 96817
Why this is a good use of taxpayer dollars: The U.S. Navy continues to have an ongoing need for reliable sources of non-polluting electrical power for its remote Navy sites around the world. To address these energy needs, the U.S. Navy and OPT have collaborated to provide low cost, easily deployable, and readily available electric power generation at ocean sites.
