Lockheed Martin to collaborate on 19MW wave energy project

The project, one of the largest in the world, is being supported with a multi-million pound grant from the Commonwealth of Australia. Its 45 PowerBuoys (demonstrated in the video below) and five Undersea Substation Pods are expected to fulfill the energy needs of around 10,000 homes. For the project, Lockheed Martin will assist with the design of OPT's PowerBuoy technology and lead the production and system integration of the wave energy converters. "Lockheed Martin is applying its expertise to commercialise promising, emerging alternative energy technologies," said the comapny's vice president of new ventures, Dan Heller. "We see great potential in harnessing the vast power of the ocean. By working with OPT and Australian industry on this project, we will advance wave energy in Australia and globally." OPT's ceo Charles Dunleavy added: "Lockheed Martin's commitment to alternative energy and its engineering, production, and systems integration expertise will provide momentum to our Australia initiatives, where both companies see great potential for large scale wave energy generation. We also appreciate the Commonwealth government's continued support of this project, which we expect to create a significant number of local jobs as we develop and maintain operations over the life of the power station." Funding for the project, which is to be located off the coast of Portland, Victoria, also includes a previously announced grant of AUD$66.5million (approx. £42m) from the Commonwealth of Australia's Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism.