RenewablesOffshore

Will Pelamis Go Public?

Going public is nothing new in the wave energy industry; for example, here, New Jersey based Ocean Power Technologies took the plunge a little over a year ago. Now, according to this piece in Reuters, Edinburgh based Pelamis Wave Power is considering going public - though it's waiting until financial markets strenthen. Right now, Pelamis is continuing to explore opportunities in Australia, New Zealand an Japan and will begin to conduct feasibility studies in South Africa.

Wind Floating Offshore

Floating offshore wind platforms is an idea that's been bobbing around the industry for some time. Floating platforms would allow developers to site projects beyond the viewshed, thereby eliminating aesthetics as an objection to a proposed offshore farm. Since most of the technology for floating platforms comes from the oil industry, it's not entirely surprising that Norwegian energy giant Statoil is investing in a 2.3 MW floating wind project 10 kilometers off the coast of Norway, according to this Business Green story.

The story points out that floating platforms might potentially reduce the cost of offshore wind since the technoogy is more effective than current practices for mooring large turbines to the sea bed. And installing floating platforms might also pose fewer disruptions to the environment during the construction phase of the project.

Floating platforms might also help a country like Scotland realize aspirations of offshore wind. As this
Red Orbit article describes, while Scotland may have the will for offshore turbines at this time, the country may not have the way. According to the article, Scotland's water depth drop quickly right off the coast and are too deep for extensive offshore wind development, at least with today's technologies.

Google Now Surfing the Oceans

You're probably already familiar with the neat application, Google Earth that allows you to view satellite imagery of any place in the world. But now, Google's going beyond land, and diving into the oceans with ambitious plans to create a three dimensional map of the world's oceans, according to this CNET story. From the article:

The company has assembled an advisory group of oceanography experts, and in December invited researchers from institutions around the world to the Mountain View, Calif., Googleplex. There, they discussed plans for creating a 3D oceanographic map, according to sources familiar with the matter.

The tool--for now called Google Ocean, the sources say, though that name could change--is expected to be similar to other 3D online mapping applications. People will be able to see the underwater topography, called bathymetry; search for particular spots or attractions; and navigate through the digital environment by zooming and panning....
Oceanography researchers, however, say such a tool would be incredibly useful. "There is no real terrain or depth model for the ocean in Google Earth," said Tim Haverland, a geospatial application developer at the Fisheries Service of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). "You can't get in a submarine and in essence fly through the water and explore ocean canyons yet."

Google Ocean will feature a basic layer that shows the depth of the sea floor and will serve as a spatial framework for additional data, sources said, adding that Google plans to try to fill in some areas of the map with high-resolution images for more detail.

I would guess that this type of information could prove extremely valuable for marine energy developers by providing data about potential sites. (full disclosure - my spouse is employed with Google, on a different project).

MMS and FERC, Both Busy

In the past month, both FERC and MMS have issued initiatives relating to marine renewables. In April 2008, FERC issued this Whitepaper that offers guidance on its pilot license process, through a series of FAQs. And also around that time, MMS issued this notice of the nominations that it received in response to its November request for nominations. The notice lists sixteen sites off the coast of New Jersey, Delaware, Georgia, Florida and California. The bulk of the sites are for offshore wind, with the exception of California which is for wave energy projects and Florida, for several current projects.

The World's Biggest Clean Energy Projects According to Forbes Include Marine Renewables

Don't miss this article from Forbes (4/30/08) on the World's Biggest Clean Energy Projects. Forbes' top ten includes several marine renewables projects, including the proposed wave energy farm off the coast of Orkney Island, a floating offshore wind energy project in the North Sea and an ambitious offshore wind farm off the coast of England. Take a look at the articles - it's worth it just for the pictures.

Tidal Project for New Zealand

Looks like the next "siting" of tidal power may be in New Zealand. According to this report, tidal company Neptune Power has received a consent to install an underwater turbine in the Cook Straits. The two rotor turbine will cost $4.5 million and has the capacity to generate one megawatt of power. However, to keep the project costs down, the turbine will be deployed closer to shore, where presumably tides are not as strong, thus reducing the power produced. The nine kilometer transmission cable that will send power to shore costs $2.3 million. If the project succeeds, Neptune hopes to have up to 30 turbines operating in Cook Strait by 2025.

Offshore Wind for the Great Lakes Faces Some Controversy

As in other parts of the country, offshore wind proposals for the Great Lakes is being met with what can best be described, as "bridled enthusiam." Even in a green-friendly state like Wisconsin, whose Public Service Commission just voted to assess the offshore wind potential on Lake Michigan and Lake Erie, many still oppose moving forward, according to this news report. Much of the opposition relates to aesthetics, although some also oppose wind because they regard it as an inefficient source of energy.

Meanwhile, in neighboring Michigan, there is also some interest in exploring offshore wind potential. Among other things, there's an interest in a consortium approach between lake front states to launch an offshore project.

Sorry for the Silence...I'm Back With Slides!

I realize that it's been a while since I last posted, but I've been playing catch up since returning from the incredible Global Marine Renewable Energy conference up in New York on April 17 and 18, 2008. Best part of the conference: DOE's announcement of $7.5 million in funding for wave, tidal, current and hydrokinetic projects, university research related to marine renewables and projects that address market accelerators that can speed the commercialization of marine renewables.

I also gave a presentation at the conference - sort of a Marine Renewables Regulation 101. It's embedded below. Let me know what you think.

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Conditional Licenses: How Helpful Are They?

Ever since FERC announced that it would issue conditional licenses for marine renewables projects, I've grappled with whether the policy makes sense for the industry. For those unfamiliar with the concept, a conditional license is issued following a full environmental review by FERC as well as a finding that the project would serve the public interest. But in contrast to a full license where an applicant can begin development right away, a conditional license makes project construction contigent on receipt of necessary authorizations from other state and federal agencies, such as a Section 401 water quality certificate or a CZMA certification. In FERC's view, issuing a conditional license would enable a developer to commence work on other requirements under the license (such as preparing various monitoring plans) and would facilitate financing. And many developers support the conditional license for similar reasons.

Rhode Island Extending Bids for Offshore Wind Development

Attention offshore wind farm developers: Rhode Island wants you. The Providence Journal reports that the state seeks a private company to construct, finance and operate an offshore wind farm about the same size and scope of the proposed Cape Wind project in Massachusetts (comprised of 130 3.6 MW turbines).

Currently, the preferred sites are off the south and western shores of Block Island, but other sites will be considered. What's interesting is one of the locations lies in state waters, just south of Block Island, while the other is southwest of the island in federal waters. Either site could contain 56 wind turbines and generate 220 megawatts of electricity (which actually makes the project roughtly half the size of Cape Wind). At this time, MMS still hasn't issued any rules for siting projects on the Outer Continental Shelf - and with presidential elections rapidly approaching (which means changes at the top of agencies like MMS), my guess is that we won't see a final rule issued and in place at least until 2009 (and that assumes that parties don't appeal the rule to the courts). So companies that are serious about developing Rhode Island's offshore wind resource should endeavor to make a proposal work in state waters so as to avoid the regulatory uncertainty in federal waters created by MMS' delays.

What's also interesting is that the article reports that even though the state has a particular site in mind, the state is also undertaking a zoning process to identify areas suitable for wind development. Apparently, there is at least some possibility that the zoning process might conclude that the Block Island site is off limits. If true, then Rhode Island's zoning process - which is intended to create more certainty for developers - could have the perverse effect of injecting more uncertainty into the permitting process for a Block Island offshore wind project.