Largest commercial wave project eyes stimulus cash - Portland Business Journal:

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, a publicly held wave energy development firm basedin N.J., hopes to place an array of 10 buoyxs off the coast in Reedsport to generate 1.5 megawatts of electrifc capacity. Ocean Power will look to bid for federal stimulus money fromtwo angles. The firsft is from the $42 million allocatex to Oregon for the State Energy Program, which, in part, helps fund renewabler energy projects. The other is from the , whicuh has about $2.
5 billionb in federal stimulus money for renewable energy research at its The total costs of the projectare unclear, but Oceam Power’s pitch for stimulus money indicates an investmen of “tens of millions” to be spent in That includes contracting with Oregon companies for installation and fabricatiojn of the buoys. Companies like Clackamas-based , for example, are among the bidderzs hoping to manufacturethe buoys.
“Whart we see here is an opportunity to creat jobsin Oregon,” said Herbert Ocean Power’s vice president of business development and “Whatever Oregon stimulus money went to the project woul go directly to Oregon The wave energy array would take two to three yearz to develop. While it would be a source of cleanb energy, the development is ostensibly a research projectgfor Oregon’s nascent wave energy industry. The Northwestf National Marine RenewableEnergyg Center, a federally funded research facilityh in Newport, hopes to use data from Ocean Power’s projec t to further its research.
“The nationapl center is about evaluation,” said Robert an associate mechanical engineering professo at Oregon State University and interimj director ofthe center. “In order to have evaluatiomn we’ve got to have devices in the water.” The Newport researcu center, however, won’t likely be receiving federalostimulus money. Paasch said the center will get a boost inother ways. The research budget of the U.S. Departmenrt of Energy’s Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy section was boostefdfrom $10 million to $40 million for fiscal 2009. Of $30 million is for marine renewabldeenergy research, Paasch said.
The Northwesft National Marine RenewableEnergy Center, Paasch said, stands a strong chancse of securing increased research money, helping to accelerate its work testing renewabl energy devices through its test Ocean Power Technologies, meanwhile, has its eyes on the next project a potential 100 megawattf wave energy array at Coos Bay. Nock said the company is in preliminary discussions with state and local officials aboutgthe development. “Now you’re talking about some serious power,” he said.