We are pleased to announce our newest project – the open-water demonstration of a utility-scale StingRAY at the US Navy’s Wave Energy Test Site (WETS). The StingRAY wave power technology is our intended go-to-market product, satisfying our customers’ needs for an affordable, acceptable and reliable commercial system. It is the culmination of an intensive product development effort that includes over 10,000 hours of in-water, scaled prototype testing. The grid-connected StingRAY deployment at WETS, which is located off Oahu, Hawaii, will commence in 2016 and last for a minimum of 12 months. We would like to express our appreciation to the Naval Facilities and Engineering Command (NAVFAC) for selecting Columbia Power and for providing $3,000,000 of project funding.
The StingRAY WETS deployment will follow three important projects currently underway, which are co-sponsored by the US Department of Energy:
- StingRAY utility-scale design and design certification
- performance and efficiency validation of our innovative direct-drive power-take-off (PTO) system
- design and testing of the StingRAY structural components expected to handle the most extreme fatigue and stress
Both the PTO and structural testing will occur at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Colorado, USA. Following the successful PTO trial, which will include the full spectrum of WETS operating conditions, all major StingRAY systems will have achieved Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 6.