{{Short description|Floating wave power device}}
The '''OE Buoy''' or Ocean Energy Buoy is a floating wave power device that uses an oscillating water column design. It is being developed by Irish company Ocean Energy Ltd., based in Cork, in collaboration with the Hydraulics and Maritime Research Centre at University College Cork, Queen's University Belfast, and Marine Institute Ireland.
The OE buoy has only one moving part, the self-rectifying Wells turbine.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=Pollitt |first=Michael |date=2007-09-19 |title=Entrepreneur makes waves with renewable energy |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2007/sep/20/guardianweeklytechnologysection.it2 |access-date=2024-07-11 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>
The OE Buoy is a version of a device known as the '''Backward Bent Duct Buoy''' (BBDB) which was invented in 1986 by wave energy pioneer and Japanese naval commander Yoshio Masuda.
== History == The company Ocean Energy Ltd. was founded in 2002 by Michael Whelan and John McCarthy.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=English |first=Eoin |date=2007-04-23 |title=Irish wave energy project buoyed by successful trials |url=https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-20031000.html |access-date=2024-07-11 |website=Irish Examiner |language=en}}</ref>
Initial model test to prove the concept were conducted at the Hydraulics and Maritime Research Centre of University College Cork at 1:50 scale, followed by further tank testing in École centrale de Nantes, France at 1:15 scale.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=OE12 |url=https://oceanenergy.ie/oe12/ |access-date=2024-07-11 |website=OceanEnergy |language=en-US}}</ref>
=== Quarter-scale tests, Galway Bay === From December 2006, a quarter-scale version of the OE12 was tested at the Ocean Energy Test Site in Galway Bay, near Spiddal.<ref>{{Cite web |title=First devices on Galway Bay test site start to generate power {{!}} Marine Institute |url=https://www.marine.ie/site-area/news-events/news/first-devices-galway-bay-test-site-start-generate-power |access-date=2024-07-10 |website=www.marine.ie}}</ref> It was moored on site on Christmas day, and survived waves of up to {{Convert|8.2|m|ft}} during a force 11 storm on New Year's Eve.<ref name=":1" /> Initially, the device was tested without a turbine to provide a baseline to compare with tank testing, but one was fitted in September 2007. Testing continued for a further 2 years until September 2009.<ref>{{Cite report |url=https://www.ocean-energy-systems.org/publications/oes-annual-reports/ |title=Annual Report 2009 |last=IEA-OES |date=2010 |page=73}}</ref> The buoy was 12 m long, 6 m wide, and 6 m high (approx. 39×20×20 ft), and weighed 28 tonnes.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" /> As of the 5th of March 2011 the model has been redeployed at the same site, primarily as a data collector for the EU funded Cores Project.
=== Full-scale test, Hawaii === Construction of a full-scale version commenced in Oregon in 2018, built by Vigor Industrial. This device is 38 ft long, 59 ft wide, with a draft of 31 ft (38×18×9.4 m), weighs 826 tons, and has a power rating of 500 kW (although this could be increased to 1.25 MW).<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |date=2022-10-18 |title=Giant, megawatt-scale wave energy generator to be tested in Scotland |url=https://newatlas.com/energy/oceanenergy-oe35-wave-power/ |access-date=2024-07-11 |website=New Atlas |language=en-US}}</ref> It was originally scheduled to be deploy to the US Navy's Wave Energy Test Site (WETS) in 2019.<ref>{{cite web |date=2 October 2018 |title=Marina Energy |url=https://marineenergy.biz/2018/10/02/oe-buoy-gearing-up-to-conquer-alternate-marine-energy-markets/ |access-date=24 January 2019}}</ref> The device was finally deployed by Ocean Energy USA at the WETS off the windward coast of Oahu on 19 July 2024. It has a rated power of 1.25 MW, and is expected to be connected to the grid in the coming weeks.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Casey |first=Tina |date=2024-07-29 |title=Wave Energy: Today 1.25 Megawatts, Tomorrow 2300 tWhrs |url=https://cleantechnica.com/2024/07/29/wave-energy-today-1-25-megawatts-tomorrow-2300-terawatt-hours-per-year/ |access-date=2024-08-01 |website=CleanTechnica |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Skopljak |first=Nadja |date=2024-07-26 |title='World-first electricity grid-scale wave energy device' hits the water off Hawaii |url=https://www.offshore-energy.biz/world-first-electricity-grid-scale-wave-energy-device-hits-the-water-off-hawaii/ |access-date=2024-08-01 |website=Offshore Energy |language=en-US}}</ref>
=== WEDUSEA Project === As part of the Horizon Europe [https://wedusea.eu/ WEDUSEA project] (Wave Energy Demonstration at Utility Scale to Enable Arrays), Ocean Energy and partners plan to adapt the design and test an OE35 device at the European Marine Energy Centre in Orkney, Scotland.<ref name=":3" /> The project was given the go-ahead to commence the 1 MW device build in September 2024, with testing then scheduled to start in June 2025.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maksumic |first=Zerina |date=2024-09-09 |title=Following EU nod of approval, 'innovative' €19.6M wave energy project proceeds to next stage |url=https://www.offshore-energy.biz/following-eu-nod-of-approval-innovative-e19-6m-wave-energy-project-proceeds-to-next-stage/ |access-date=2024-09-13 |website=Offshore Energy |language=en-US}}</ref> {{As of|2026|3}}, installation of the device is scheduled for June 2026.<ref name=":02">{{Cite report |url=https://www.ocean-energy-systems.org/publications/oes-annual-reports/document/annual-report-2025/ |title=Annual Report 2025 |last=Brito e Melo |first=Ana |date=19 March 2026 |publisher=International Energy Agency - Ocean Energy Systems |page=225 |pages=}}</ref>
== Future projects == Ocean Energy also plan to scale the technology up further, to the OE50 buoy capable of producing 2.5 MW.<ref name=":3" />
== References == <references />
== External links == *[http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2010/0205/breaking41.htm "Ocean Energy signs turbine deal"], 2010 *[https://web.archive.org/web/20120214031153/http://oreg.ca/docs/May%20Symposium/Polaski2.pdf "Ocean Energy in Ireland National Policies and Strategies for RD&D and Commercialisation of Ocean Energy"] – pictures OE Buoy and Wavebob, both in situ on test site 2007 (pages 14–19) *[https://web.archive.org/web/20091115111614/http://www.oceanenergy.ie/oe-technology/platform.html Device in situ under test] *[http://www.thepost.ie/themarket/wave-energy-firm-gets-euro230000-funding-44092.html ''Sunday Business Post'', September 2009] *[http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2011/0305/1224291373717.html ''Irish Times'', March 2011] *[http://www.fp7-cores.eu/partners.html ''Cores Project'' March 2011] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720162033/http://www.fp7-cores.eu/partners.html |date=2011-07-20 }}
Category:Renewable energy in the Republic of Ireland Category:Wave energy converters