Ocean Power Technologies deploys Spanish wave unit

Pennington, N.J.-based Ocean Power Technologies (Nasdaq: OPTT) said today it has deployed its first PowerBuoy wave energy unit to Spanish utility Iberdrolam.

Ocean Power Technologies said its wave-power unit is the first of what’s expected to be a string of 10 PowerBuoys planned for the project located 3 miles off the coast of Santoña, Spain.

The system is expected to which upon completion, is expected to generate 1.39 megawatts of electricity to the grid.

The system is designed to generate enough electricity to power some 2,500 homes each year. Similar deployments have been underway in Australia (see Ocean Power Tech to build wave station in Australia).

The company said the deployment is the first step in its broader efforts to commercialize wave power as an economically-viable source of renewable energy.

Among the other partners involved in the venture are France-based energy company Total; Sodercan, the industrial development agency of Cantabria; and IDAE, the energy agency of the Spanish government. France recently began efforts to build a tidal energy system off the Brittany coast to provide electricity to homes (see Tidal power gets modern in France).

Ocean Power Technologies was contracted by the Spanish government to operate and maintain the wave power station for a period of as much as 10 years. The company said standard maintenance is recommended every three to four years.

The company said much of the PowerBuoys system is submerged and are designed for a life of 30 years. The PowerBuoy measures 7 meters in diameter at the sea surface and is 20 meters in length and weighs approximately 60 tonnes (66 tons US). The PowerBuoys system has been grid certified by an independent engineering firm.