WA Wave Project

Fact Sheet 10-25-2007

The Grays Harbor Ocean Energy and Coastal Protection Project

What is proposed? Download Grays Harbor Ocean Energy Project PDF presentation

An application for a Preliminary Permit has been made by the Washington Wave Company LLC to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for a large renewable energy generation project in shallow coastal waters off of the Washington towns of Westport and Ocean Shores. Energy will be generated by large wind turbines further offshore, and wave energy converters closer inshore. They will share the same transmission cables. The wave energy absorbed will reduce the height of damaging storm waves that create coastal erosion and difficulties for local communities and navigation. The project will thus also provide coastal erosion protection.

The initial permit application is for 90 wind turbines and 350 wave converters, producing 400 MW/hr at peak and 168 MW/hr on average. This makes it one of the largest proposed wind and wave projects in the world. But the permit application makes it clear that this is an upper limit for the project and subject to negotiation. The final number and siting of turbines and wave converters will not be determined until extensive consultation has been successful with all the stakeholders.

The map below shows the project dimensions and features.

The photo below with graphics shows the possible locations of wind turbines (marked with x) and wave energy converters (marked with o). The wave converters are clustered near the harbor entrance to absorb damaging wave energy. They are also located along the same transmission cables to the wind turbines, thus creating great economies of scale.

Aerial view of Westport, Washington, looking to the Southeast. Wave and wind generators will be located in the lower right area of the photograph.

Aerial view of Ocean Shores, Washington, looking south towards Westport across the Grays Harbor bay entrance.

Who is proposing the Project? The Washington Wave Company LLC was formed in 2007 specifically to initiate and promote the Project. The Company’s founder, Burton Hamner, is the General Contractor for the Tacoma Narrows Tidal Power Feasibility Study sponsored by the City of Tacoma, Washington. His existing ocean energy development company, Puget Sound Tidal Power LLC, leads a consortium of eight marine engineering, FERC licensing, resource economics and other firms, and three University of Washington professors, to evaluate all aspects of developing a commercial-scale renewable energy project using large submerged turbines in the Tacoma Narrows. The team is thus now experienced at integrating the many elements needed for project analysis and development.

The Company will retain the services of Coast and Harbor Engineering, Inc. of Edmonds, WA. CHE has done extensive coastal studies and engineering at Westport and Grays Harbor for coastal protection. CHE has already

Mr. Hamner has lived in Washington since 1983. He studied marine biology at Harvard, and obtained degrees in Business Administration and in Marine Affairs at the University of Washington. He worked for the US Army Corps of Engineers Seattle District as a marine environmental coordinator and he wrote the Environmental Impact Statement for maintenance of the La Push harbor jetty and dredging project, thus gaining great familiarity with outer coast environment and coastal communities. He later became an Environmental Planner for the Washington Department of Ecology. Since 1994 he has been a consultant for the United Nations, the US Agency for International Development, the World Bank, the City of Seattle, the Grays Harbor Paper Company and others, promoting clean technology in developing countries and at home. Mr. Hamner founded Puget Sound Tidal Power LLC in 2006 to bring his expertise and contacts together on behalf of organizations evaluating ocean energy projects. Besides the Tacoma Narrows study he is evaluating ocean energy potential for another Washington utility.

The Washington Wave Company was founded to be an Independent Power Producer with its own financing, investors, directors and operations. The Company is now recruiting partners for investment in the Project. Several prominent companies and utilities have expressed interest already. The Company intends to partner with the US Department of Energy and the US Army Corps of Engineers to develop the Project as a test site for new wind and wave technologies and for new strategies to protect coastlines by turning ocean energy into renewable power. The Company expects significant grant financing from state and federal agencies to support its development.

What will this look like? The wind turbines will be 2-3 miles offshore but still very visible because of their size. The picture below is of the UK's largest offshore wind farm at Scroby Sands, generating power for as many as 41,000 homes. This is similar to the appearance of the proposed Project.

The WAVE energy converters will be totally submerged and thus invisible from shore or boat. Very small (1ft diam) marker buoys will identify their specific locations.

Oregon State University is developing wave energy technology and testing it under near-identical conditions for the Project. We will collaborate with them to develop new solutions.

The Archimedes Wave Swing is an example of the totally submerged device suitable for the Project at Grays Harbor.

Why is this happening now? The offshore wind and wave energy resource on the Washington coast has recently been identified as immense, with gigawatts of potential clean renewable power potential. The Electric Power Research Institute identified Grays Harbor as a leading site in North America for wave energy generation. And wind and wave renewable energy technology has advanced greatly in just the last few years. Recent national studies have greatly advanced the understanding of wave energy generation in particular. Thus the technology trends make this timely now, here. Within ten years the Project and the technology will have evolved so the Project can produce its full rated output and perhaps more.

There is also competition for good sites. Seven wave energy projects are already proposed on the Oregon coast. Utilities in Washington State must meet Renewable Portfolio Standards for renewable energy purchase and all good sites for wind and solar generation are already under intense scrutiny and development. By filing the application for a preliminary permit, the Company reserves its rights under FERC rules to evaluate the project for a year and then apply for a pilot project license to continue developing the site with stakeholders.

Federal funding for ocean energy R&D is about to materialize and the Department of Energy is looking for test sites for ocean energy technology, particularly wave and offshore wind. The Project will offer itself to the DOE as a national test center in 2008.

The Washington Legislature is now planning for its session beginning in January 2008. Several legislators say they will introduce bills to support ocean energy R&D and in particular test sites where devices can be installed and studied quickly. The Project intends to apply for such support.

What are the environmental concerns? The wind turbines, 2-3 miles out at sea, will be visible from shore, and this has caused protests in other projects. The turbines and wave converters will take up space in an area frequented by migrating gray whales (which are protected but not endangered) and occasionally by other kinds of whales. It is unknown whether the foundations and anchors will cause obstacle problems for whales. Solid foundations will presumably appear as massive rocks which whales avoid using their sonar sense.

The new turbine designs are demonstrated to not injure birds, which fly around the huge slow-spinning blades. There are no significant noise or pollution issues.

To mitigate for reduced fishing area available, the anchors for the wind turbines and wave converters will be designed as artificial reefs. With suitable surface structure (nooks and crannies) they will be highly productive hard habitat in an area that is only loose sand and thus limited in productivity. It is expected that fish density will increase significantly in the project area. The spacing of turbines and wave converters is sufficient for vessels up to 100 ft to easily navigate among them for line fishing.

Can this all be stopped? Yes, of course. Dozens of agencies and organizations must participate in the project development process and it must have significant majority support among stakeholders. The FERC preliminary permit simply grants the right to study the project before applying for a pilot project license. FERC licenses are conditional upon authorization by relevant authorities.

There is no need to stop anything at this time as nothing has been proposed except an idea. This is a good idea – generate renewable clean energy while also protecting the coastline and our towns from erosion and property damage. It can also enhance fisheries productivity. There are concerns to resolve such as what will whales do when they encounter a generator foundation or anchor, but this can only be determined by actually installing pilot test units and monitoring them for some time.

What’s in it for local communities? The benefits for local communities, in particular Ocean Shores and Westport, are • Generation of clean renewable energy from ocean waves and wind; • Protection of coastal communities and navigation by absorbing and converting damaging wave energy to renewable electricity; • Enhancement of local fisheries productivity by making wave and wind device foundations into artificial reefs; • Creation of local jobs and contribution to sustainable local economies – each wind turbine installed is expected to support two full time jobs, and two wave converters would support one job. The project proposes 90 wind turbines and 350 wave converters.

How big could this get? The offshore energy resource could ultimately provide power for much of Western Washington. The wind and wave energy resource is immense and continues off the shore at Grays Harbor far out to sea beyond the three-mile limit and FERC jurisdiction. The seabed is shallow enough for a variety of very large wind turbines and wave converters. They can share foundations and transmission cables. There is room, and energy resource, for literally thousands of turbines and wave converters, all of which be largely invisible from shore depending on their distance.

Floating wind turbines are now on the drawing board that can be moored in 300 feet of water or more. The coast off of Grays Harbor is relatively shallow for miles out - the 300ft depth contour is generally about 17 miles offshore for a distance of about 45 miles north-south. Turbines could be spaced in four one-mile-wide bands along the 45-mile at spacing of one turbine per mile. The turbines closest to shore would still be 13 miles out, nearly invisible despite their immense size. This spacing would allow 180 3MW turbines producing 540MW at peak. But that is only the beginning. The cables for the wind turbines are ideal for locating wave energy converters to feed their own energy in. If wave devices are included at 2 per mile along the necessary 250 miles of cable connecting the wind turbines, there could be 500 converters installed each making about 0.5MW, for a total of 250MW more peak power. Because the cables to tap into are already installed the cost of each wave converter is much cheaper than in projects currently proposed.

Another renewable energy innovation is using the wind turbine towers themselves as wave energy generators. The bases of the towers are huge and will be either massive sunken pilings or large floating structures. These can support wave converters that absorb the energy hitting the structure and turning it into renewable energy. The added construction cost may be offset by the value of energy produced.

The potential for ocean renewable energy is really enormous when transmission cables are not needed. Floating wind turbines far offshore could generate power for hydrogen power generation on commercial ships anchored nearby. Hydrogen tankers could be steadily steaming into Grays Harbor bringing clean renewable fuel. There is no practical limit to the renewable energy that can be generated from the ocean this way, and the Project is in the ideal place to make this power.

The Project takes up a relatively small space on the coast; there is room for many more projects from other developers, and a good market for competition to develop the most profitable, sustainable projects.

The picture below illustrates the opportunity. Offshore wind turbines and wave converters (shown are the Pelamis devices) can be installed off the coast of Washington in suitable depths that cover hundreds of square miles, where the seasonal wind and wave energy is among the highest in the world. They can make hydrogen at sea on floating platforms, and the hydrogen can be shipped into the nearest port - Grays Harbor. Such activity would be licensed by the Minerals Management Service and is not proposed as part of this Project. However the feasibility studies will consider this opportunity.

Who is likely to help make this work? The US Department of Energy (DOE) funds the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NRREL) and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). NREL has been working on wind turbine technologies for many years and has recently been studying offshore wind turbines and a variety of installation methods. NREL is coordinating the DOE’s new Ocean Energy research program and is planning to develop ocean energy technology test sites. The Project is ideal for this purpose and the Company is already initiating discussions how to make this happen.

The PNNL is DOE’s center for environmental studies of fish and hydropower generation. It has a Marine Science Center at Sequim, Washington which specializes in small and large scale marine environmental studies. PNNL has appointed an Ocean Energy Business Manager who is now in discussion with the Company regarding partnership with PNNL for environmental studies and monitoring of the Project.

Two ocean energy R&D bills have passed out of the US House and Senate and are headed to conference, and likely to be funded to provide over $10 million a year for ocean energy R&D. Grays Harbor and the Project are located in the district of Congressman Norm Dicks, D-WA. He sits on the House Appropriations Committee and his chairman of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee. Congressman Dicks is a strong supporter of renewable energy and also economic development in his district, and is well positioned to guide Federal funds to the DOE for test projects and environmental studies that support the Project.

The US Army Corps of Engineers is another significant potential partner and contributor. The Corps spends billions of dollars every year protecting America’s coastlines from excessive ocean energy. The right wave energy converter technology could make coastal protection into a renewable energy and revenue-creating opportunity and give the Corps a positive new climate-solution mission that enhances its traditional missions.

What’s next? The FERC will decide within a few months whether to issue a preliminary permit, following a public comment period. All FERC proceedings can be followed on the FERC website (just search for “FERC” and “Willapa” to get to the page fast).

The Company will be discussing the Project with key stakeholders, legislators, municipal authorities, utilities and others. Most important is the short term goal to increase the awareness that the ocean energy resources available are immense and can be harvested sustainably and economically, if the right partnerships are formed.

How do you estimate the renewable power? The basic analysis is not complicated. The cost of construction can be calculated and total Cost of Energy calculated. But it is all speculation until the agencies with jurisdiction, and the public stakeholders, all agree what will be allowed. Then the engineering can become realistic. The figure below is a simple calculation of energy generation potential from the Project's proposed operation:

Potential Revenue: 168MW/hr x $0.10/kW/hr x (350 days/yr x 24 hrs/day = 8400 hrs) = $141,120,000 / year.

Where can I get more information?

Check this web page for updates. To ask questions or to be added to an email updates list, send an email to waves@pugetsoundtidalpower.com