OPT's PowerBuoy deployed on open sea.

The Australian subsidiary of Ocean Power Technologies – Ocean Power Technologies (Australasia) announced it has received a AUD 66.5 million award from the Australian Federal Government to build a 19 Mw wave power project to be located off the coast of Victoria, Australia.

OPT is one of the four companies to be awarded funding from the Renewable Energy Demonstration Program. The company will build the 19 MW power plant in collaboration with Leighton Contractors. Construction will happen in three phases. Once completed, the wave power plant will produce enough clean electricty to supply about 10,000 average homes in Portland, and the surrounding area.

The project is going to be developed by a special purpose company – Victorian Wave Partners – formed by OPT (Australasia) and Leighton after the signing of an agreement last December. The special purpose company will pursue wave power project development off the east and south coasts of Australia, where there are favorable conditions for harnessing marine energy. Work on the first project will begin in Q2 2010.

This will be a great opportunity for the company to implement its PowerBuoy technology in a commercial scale power project.