The DoE grant will be used to help fund the scale-up of the power output per PowerBuoy from the current level of 150 kW to 500 kW.

The technology development effort will also focus on increasing the wave power extraction efficiency and a ‘Design-for-Manufacture’ approach, which aims to achieve lower installed capital and wave energy costs that are expected to be competitive with energy based on fossil fuels.

This is the second award to OPT by the DoE. In 2008, OPT received $2m to provide funding for the construction of a PB150 PowerBuoy wave power device to be deployed in connection with OPT’s project at Reedsport, Oregon, USA.