The WaveSub will now be towed to the FaBTest test site in Cornwall, England. Here MPS will demonstrate the WaveSub’s power-generation capacity across a broad range of sea conditions, the speed and cost-effective price at which it can be installed, its low maintenance costs and its survivability through the harshest of conditions.
“With nearly a decade of research and development invested in the WaveSub, we are now at a point where an affordable, scalable and reliable wave energy device is within our reach. The testing of the quarter-scale WaveSub at FaBTest represents a milestone for MPS – we are delighted to have reached this point in its development,” said Dr Gareth Stockman, Chief Executive Officer of Marine Power Systems.
The WaveSub operates by capturing wave energy around six miles from shore, utilizing the continual orbital motion of waves to drive a sophisticated power-take-off (PTO) system. The power is transferred to land via an undersea cable. At full-scale, a WaveSub device rated at 5 MW could power approximately 5,000 homes.
Along with the environmental benefit of cutting CO2 emissions and helping to meet climate change targets globally, wave power could potentially provide jobs, energy resilience and economic benefits.
As it moves into this new phase of testing, MPS is launching an investment opportunity to enable it to move into the final stages of development before commercialization; the testing of a full-scale multi-MW WaveSub. With investment in place, MPS will be on track to begin installation of a grid connected wave farm by 2020.
