Construction complete for bioWAVE ocean energy unit

Ocean energy company BioPower Systems (BPS) has completed the construction and onshore testing of its prototype bioWAVE wave power unit — the result of a $21 million project which includes an $11 million grant from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).

“The bioWAVE unit is a 26-metre-high steel structure that sways back and forth, mostly below the surface of the ocean,” explained ARENA CEO Ivor Frischknecht. “The design was inspired by undersea plants.

“The oscillating motion activates hydraulic cylinders to spin a generator, with the power transported to the shore via a subsea cable,” Frischknecht continued. Additionally, the unit automatically assumes a ‘safe’ position during bad weather events, lying flat against the seabed in order to reduce the structural design requirements while maintaining reliability.

The structure is scheduled for deployment at Port Fairy, Victoria, in November this year. Frischknecht said the device is expected to operate for “at least 12 months”, with the data collected set to “inform the design of a larger 1 MW commercial-scale bioWAVE unit, planned as the next phase of development for the technology”.

BPS has been working on the technology since 2006, taking it through an in-depth research and development phase to full-scale demonstration. According to the company’s CEO, Dr Timothy Finnigan, “Achieving practical completion of the bioWAVE is a major milestone in the development of this technology.

“We look forward to seeing it operating in the Southern Ocean, developing the next-generation machine and exploiting the technology around the world,” Finnigan said.