Ocean Power Technologies' Portland Wave Power Station to be Installed in 2013

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources Australia (Perth, Australia)--Ocean Power Technologies Australasia Private Limited (Perth, Australia), a subsidiary of Ocean Power Technologies Incorporated (NASDAQ:OPTT) (OPT) (Pennington, New Jersey), which is Australia's leading wave energy pioneer, is currently in the permitting stage for a 19-megawatt (MW) wave energy power station, near Portland, off the coast of Victoria, Australia. The project will be built in three stages, and the estimated total cost is $230 million.

Ocean Power initially selected Leighton Contractors (New South Wales, Australia) as a joint venture partner to develop the project. However, the company changed its mind in 2012 and selected Lockheed Martin Australia Private Limited (Canberra, Australia), which is a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin Corporation (Maryland, U.S.), as the strategic partner. According to the agreement, "Lockheed Martin will assist the design of OPT's Power Buoy technology, lead the production and system integration of the wave-energy converters and support the overall program management." Ocean Power also has formed a special purpose entity called Victorian Wave Partners to develop this Wave Energy Project, which was proposed in 2008.

The company is currently requesting permits and license agreements to proceed with further stages in the project's development. Stage I of the project will involve construction of 10 PB150 Power Buoys, which are 150 kilowatts (kW) each, and a substation to supply renewable energy to the grid. Stage I will produce approximately 1.5 MW of electricity during normal hours of operation, and the capacity of the PB150 Power Buoy is expected to increase to 860 kW during peak hours. The second and third phases of the project will feature 18 PB500 Power Buoys, which will produce 0.5 MW of energy each with a peak output capacity of 2.4 MW. All the three phases are expected to generate a combined output of 19.5 MW, which will be enough to light up to 7,000 homes.

According to Keith Boyer, the general manager of Ocean Power, the company expects to deploy the first set of units for Phase I of the project by end of this year. Phase I will involve a total construction period of six months. The second and third phases will follow the commissioning of the first phase, and company hopes to launch the third and final phase of the plant no later than 2017.

Ocean Power received $66.4 million from the Australian federal government in 2009 and is currently waiting to secure the balance of funds, while continuing discussions with interested parties to sell the power.

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