Wind, Waves and Watts
After two years of testing in Denmark, the combined wave and wind platform is ready for US waters.
Meaning “god of the sea”, Poseidon is one of the most thoroughly tested wave and wind systems in the world and is soon ready to go commercial.
Floating Power Inc. is the joint venture of an American merchant bank and a Danish company with a great idea. Poseidon, from Floating Power Plant (FPP), combines wind turbines with a floating platform that absorbs energy from passing waves and converts it to electricity. Bridgeworks Capital, from Oregon, specialises in bringing sustainable innovations to the market. After helping develop several successful renewable energy solutions, they took interest in the Danish invention. In the new company, FPP and Bridgeworks Capital will further develop and commercialise the technology together.
By combining wave and wind power, Poseidon reduces the problems of variable energy supply. Wind turbines can effectively harness energy from the passing wind, but only when it’s blowing. Waves, on the other hand, transfer and concentrate energy from wind that has passed over other parts of the ocean, and they keep coming long after the wind has stopped. The waves provide a relatively stable and predictable base load, supplemented with additional wind energy when available. With wave and wind combined, Poseidon collects a much higher fraction of the energy that passes by than a wind turbine or wave power plant would do alone. You can read more about the technology in our main article about Poseidon.
More than 12 years and over 8 million Euro have been invested in laying a foundation for the Poseidon energy system. Starting with a 2.4 metre-wide unit in a wave basin and slowly scaling up, FPP was ready to test their idea in open waters in 2008. After two years in the waters off the Danish coast, the 37 metre pilot has shown that the system is capable of converting 35% of the wave and wind energy into electricity.
Starting with a small test pilot and gradually extending the model both in size and complexity, has allowed FPP to thoroughly test their Poseidon technology. The tie-up with Bridgeworks will provide the funding needed to take it to the next step. In Oregon, the company will have access to an existing electricity grid, and several wave energy groups and institutes that can contribute to the development. The greater proximity to the American market is an important factor in commercialising this innovative Danish technology.
