Marine Power Systems has completed sea testing for its WaveSub prototype wave power device off the coast of Cornwall in England.
Testing took place at the FaBTest site over the last 12 months proving the functionality of the 1:4 scale device (pictured) across a range of sea states, the company said.
The results pave the way for Marine Power Systems to progress with the design, manufacture and testing of a full-scale version of the WaveSub in the coming months, it added.
Marine Power Systems chief technology officer Graham Foster said: “The wrap-up of the WaveSub testing at FaBTest is a significant step forwards for MPS and we’re delighted with what we have achieved.
“We have demonstrated the fundamental USP’s of WaveSub such as its inherent ease of transportation, deployment and maintenance; we have achieved a high level of technical capability with the remote control, monitoring and communication systems; and importantly we have shown we are able to generate grid compliant electricity from ocean waves.
“The testing lasted a year and included trouble-shooting and maintenance out at sea in often inclement weather conditions.
“The project concluded with the decommissioning of the test site last month.”
He added that a R&D project of this scale and complexity was “never going to been plain sailing – we’ve had to deal with various issues and setbacks along the way”.
Some issues took longer to resolve than others with the grid emulator buoy and communications proving particularly troublesome, he said.
FaBTEst site manager George Crossley said: “The WaveSub met with some significant weather over the last year of testing in Falmouth Bay and the team at MPS has shown dedication and determination in the lead-up to successfully generating energy at FaBTest.
“Challenges are expected when testing a device at the frontier of technology in this harsh environment; MPS addressed them and through this process have learnt lessons and gathered the data that they need to progress their technology.
“It has been great to work with the MPS team over the last 12 months and we look forward to working with them on their growing portfolio of marine energy devices in the future.”