Wave power in China
Posted by Big Gav in china, ocean power, wave power
Israel 21C has an article on a company trying to sell wave power systems in China - they are making some bold claims about the price of construction - it will be interesting to see if they can deliver on them.
Israeli company S.D.E. Energy, developer of an innovative technology for generating electricity from sea waves, has signed an agreement for selling sea wave power plants in China for an undisclosed sum.
Construction of the power plants will be financed by investors from Hong Kong and China. Two joint venture companies, formed in Hong Kong for the purpose of the agreement by S.D.E. and its investors, will build an initial model in Guangzhou province in southern China. Should the model prove to be successful, it will launch the establishment of sea wave power plants throughout China.
The S.D.E. process is subject to the approval of the government of China, which it intends to target as the sole customer for the electricity generated.
Electricity shortages in China are worsening every day and current energy sources are problematic: fossil fuels increase the country's already intolerable levels of air and environmental pollution; nuclear power plants and hydroelectric stations are highly susceptible to earthquake damage; typhoons make building wind farms extremely difficult, and solar systems are costly.
With prices of crude oil rising fast, there is new interest in alternative sources of energy, and the idea of generating power from sea waves is becoming increasingly attractive, according to S.D.E. ...
According to S.D.E., the cost of erecting a one megawatt wave power station starts at $650,000, compared with $900,000 for a similarly-sized natural gas station; $1.5 million for a coal-fired or wind-powered station; and $3 million for a solar power station.
US investors have taken note of S.D.E.'s advances, managing director Shmuel Ovadia told ISRAEL21c. "We're currently in talks to raise $100 million from US investors, and we're negotiating building a 30 MW sea wave power plant in San Francisco at a cost of $20 million."
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