Irish wave energy technology company Ocean Energy has announced that its wave energy convertor, the ‘OE Buoy’, will be built in the United States by Oregon-based marine-fabrication company Vigor, and deployed at the US Navy’s Wave Energy Test Site in O’ahu, Hawaii, this autumn.
The contract value is €5.25 million out of a total project value of almost €10 million for this first of a kind grid-scale project at the Hawaiian test site.
Potential rated capacity of up to 1.25 MW in electrical power production
The 750-tonne 'OE Buoy' measures 38 x 18 metres with a draught of 9m and has a potential rated capacity of up to 1.25 MW in electrical power production. In Ireland, each deployed commercial device could reduce CO2 emissions by more than 4,370 tonnes annually, which for a utility-scale wave farm of 100 MW could amount to over 218,000 tonnes of CO2 in a full year.
“Building on the Irish-US government MoU for collaboration on marine and hydrokinetic energy technologies’ research, Ocean Energy and its partners are demonstrating how transatlantic co-operation can yield immensely productive results — Irish innovation coupled with US engineering is providing the US Navy Wave Energy Test Site with sustainable and logistical gains and a template for future large-scale projects,” said Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Simon Coveney TD.
“With rigorous testing and scaling of OE Buoy over the past 10 years, the announcement of the device being built in Oregon represents a truly major milestone for Ocean Energy,” said John McCarthy, Ocean Energy CEO.
Combination of Irish innovation and American manufacturing expertise
“It’s the combination of Irish innovation and American manufacturing expertise and that’s always going to produce a world-class result. We are delighted to be partnering with Vigor, a renowned US marine and industrial fabrication company, who have a track record of delivering cutting edge engineering projects.
"This internationally significant project will be invaluable to job creation, renewable energy generation and greenhouse gas reduction.”
“With the support of Enterprise Ireland, we have been actively pursuing opportunities in North America. The marine renewables market is rapidly expanding, with the potential of marine energy meeting a significant percentage of the global energy demand.
Substantial wave energy resource
"The United States has a substantial wave energy resource, which could deliver up to 15 percent of its annual electricity demand, which would represent a considerable market in electricity sales alone,” added McCarthy.
The €10 million project is part-funded by the US Department of Energy’s office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) and the
Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), under a 2012 agreement committing the American and Irish governments to collaborating on marine hydrokinetic technologies.
“SEAI invests in research and innovation to promote the development of new technologies," said Jim Gannon, CEO, SEAI. "For a number of years, we have supported Ocean Energy and are delighted to see them reach the significant milestone of full scale sea trials.
"It is also great to see Irish companies benefitting from continued US Ireland collaboration in sustainable energy, and using the wave energy facilities and resources to best effect.”
It is estimated that a 100 MW wave farm could power up to 47,000 Irish homes. The technology could deliver up to 15,000 jobs to the Irish economy by 2030 and go on to create substantial export potential both for the technology and the energy generated.