Providing Reliable Power to Coastal Communities using Hybrid MHK Systems

Coastal communities share close proximity with one of the earth’s most reliable energy sources – moving water – yet they are often plagued with costly and unreliable energy resources due to the underdeveloped nature of commercial kinetic energy conversion. Coastal communities also face rising risks of flood, tropical storm, and other extreme events exacerbated by climate change; the ongoing resiliency and economic development of coastal communities will depend heavily on the ability to supply reliable and cost effective electricity to these communities in a sustainable way. Not to be understated is the challenge of distributing power throughout communities; despite being located near the coast, communities can span many thousands of feet, or even miles, from the location of ocean energy generators and costs expand greatly as distance grows. Emrgy, Inc. will partner with subcontractors ProsumerGrid and the University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez as well as with the end-user Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) to develop a Hybrid Distributed MHK Array system that will be able to efficiently and economically provide reliable power supporting key needs of the end-user such as grid resiliency, sustainability, and low cost generation. The general scope of this Phase I effort will include: 1) end-user engagement to drive alignment between the design and user needs; 2) conceptual system design, performance verification, and techno-economic analysis; 3) Phase II Planning for deployment. A Phase II effort would include: 1) Finalization of the design; 2) Procurement and manufacturing; 3) System Deployment and Validation; 4) Operation and End-User Handover. Upon successful completion of Phase I, the project team will deliver the detailed design for a hybrid MHK system that addresses the reliability and cost challenges identified by PREPA for the identified coastal community. The design will include all hardware requirements for generating turbines scalable to 50kW, integrated with energy storage, solar and all software controls that enable rapid power dispatch when commanded. In Phase II, the project team will construct, deliver, and test a prototype in the community, and based on Emrgy’s deep experience in MHK device manufacturing the team expects that the hybrid system can achieve TRL 8 through the Phase II implementation.