Hydrokinetic Energy Emerges as Next Big Step in Renewable Technology

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Hydrokinetic energy in the U.S. is still in its infancy, yet current advances will make this form of renewable power generation technology as common as wind turbines within the next 10 years. Hydrokinetic technologies produce electricity by harnessing the kinetic energy of a body of water, which results from its motion. Since water is 832 times denser than air, the ocean tides, waves, currents and rivers represent an untapped, powerful and clean renewable energy resource.

Click on image at right for a breakdown by state and province of active hydrokinetic power projects in North America.

Experts in the field of hydrokinetic energy estimate that the amount of energy that could feasibly be captured from U.S. waves, tides and river currents is enough to power more than 67 million homes. Based on current project proposals, the U.S. could be producing 13,000 megawatts (MW) of power from hydrokinetic energy by 2025.

Wave, current and tidal renewable energy technologies are at the forefront of hydrokinetic energy development in the U.S. and consist of several differing technologies:

• Point absorbers, in which vertical motion acts as a pump to drive a turbine
• Oscillating water columns, in which the up-and-down air movement created by waves drives turbines
• Snake attenuators, in which the movement of segments drive a hydraulic motor
• Over-topping devices, in which a floating reservoir creates head pressure to drive a turbine

Tidal energy technologies operate like underwater wind turbines to take advantage of predictable incoming and outgoing ocean tides, and are similar to other technologies still in their infancy.

Wave and current technologies, which are now in their first and second generations of development, are taking a phased approach with commercial deployment predicted in their third-generation devices. They are being developed off the west coast of the U.S., as well as in Hawaii, Alaska and New England. Tidal energy technologies are being developed in Washington, California, Maine and Massachusetts. Which technologies will prevail is yet to be determined.

Permitting and licensing these new hydrokinetic projects typically takes three to five years to be approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the Department of the Interiors Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE), formerly called the U.S. Minerals Management Service, not including additional time to complete state and local permits and approvals. Since the technologies are new, nothing is fast-tracked through the approvals process.

FERC oversees renewable energy permits in state waters, and FERC and BOEMRE share authority over renewable energy projects on the outer-continental shelf.

According to FERC, there are 90 total issued preliminary permits for hydrokinetic projects as of April 4, 2011, totaling 10,226 MW and consisting of 26 tidal projects, nine wave projects and 55 inland (river) projects.

There are 151 pending preliminary hydrokinetic FERC permits, totaling 17,847 MW and consisting of three tidal projects and 148 inland projects.

There are 79 projects in pre-filing status with FERC for a hydrokinetic license., totaling 7,953 MW, and three in post-filing status, totaling 2,555 MW.

Another hurdle is financing, which is always difficult with a new technology startup. Investors typically want to invest in safe or secure projects that have successful track records. But with new technologies, the projects must have independent engineering studies, independent energy assessments, supply contracts and project construction and deployment contracts, independent financial model reviews, and a chance at obtaining power purchase and interconnect agreements in order to mitigate as much financial risk to the investor as possible.

The federal government is supportive of new renewable energy technologies, with renewable energy incentive programs such as the Clean Renewable Energy Bonds (CREBS) and Investment and Production Tax Credits (ITC/PTC) programs; Grant in Lieu of ITC/PTC, which provides cash grants instead of the ITC for renewable energy developers; and the Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credit (MTC). These programs help to grow domestic manufacturing industries that produce clean energy equipment.

The first wave energy project expected to reach commercial deployment in the U.S. is the Wave Energy Park point absorber project being developed by Ocean Power Technologies Incorporated (NASDAQ:OPTT) (Pennington, New Jersey) in Reedsport, Oregon. An environmental assessment was issued in late 2010, with permits and licensing in progress. The Reedsport Oregon Wave Energy Park is advancing through second-generation pilot project and is expected to move to third-generation commercial deployment by 2012.

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