Wave powered energy buoy survives Irene

An energy-producing buoy dropped in the Atlantic Ocean survived a battering from Hurricane Irene. The device made by US marine firm Ocean Power Technologies survived 15 metre waves during the […]

An energy-producing buoy dropped in the Atlantic Ocean survived a battering from Hurricane Irene. The device made by US marine firm Ocean Power Technologies survived 15 metre waves during the height of the storm.

The PowerBuoy is designed to provide persistent, off-grid, clean energy in remote ocean locations for a wide variety of maritime security and monitoring applications. It was dropped in the ocean by the US Navy who are testing its potential.

Charles F. Dunleavy, Chief Executive Officer of OPT said: “Despite encountering significant wave heights, the buoy continued to produce power and operated exactly as designed for extreme sea conditions. After the storm passed, our PowerBuoy was right on station where it had originally been deployed prior to the storm. The performance further demonstrates the viability of wave power as an alternative source of energy.”

The PowerBuoy, which was deployed on August 11, 2011, continues to undergo sea trials approximately 20 miles off the coast of New Jersey under a US Navy program for coastal security and maritime surveillance.

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