Finnish wave energy developer, Wello Ltd, has received better than expected results in tests of its Penguin wave energy converter installed in Orkney, Scotland.
The Penguin has now been tested in operations with different wave conditions and with maximum wave heights of 12 m. With mild sea conditions (2-3 meter waves) peak power ranges between 300kW and 700kW, while with current (non-optimised) control, continuous power of 160-180 kW can be captured from these waves. These results are slightly higher than estimated based on scale model tests for similar configuration. Moreover, the Penguin can be upgraded to a higher performance by increasing the weight of the rotator.
The converter was redeployed in Orkney in July 2013 after pre-commissioningof the power plant, and has now been producing electricity to the grid with direct conversion from wave movement to electricity with the aid of a rotating eccentric mass inside the device.
"This is a significant milestone for us. We have now demonstrated that the operational principle of the Penguin works in full scale and power generation potential is in the right ballpark," said Aki Luukkainen, CEO of Wello Ltd. "Designing the product with off-the-shelf industrial components has saved us a lot of time and provides us with a short cut to commercialize the technology. We are also progressing gradually to improve on the marine operations side."
The company next plans to put in place support and maintenance practices, implement gradual improvements and optimise the control in different conditions.
