Australian Government Invests More in Renewables

Australian Minister for Industry Ian Macfarlane today announced a significant milestone for Carnegie’s Perth Wave Energy Project, supported by $13.1 million of Federal Government funding through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency.

Mr Macfarlane unveiled three newly constructed CETO units at the Australian Marine Complex in Henderson, Western Australia.

“Australia has made significant investments in renewable energy. These are long-term investments that are moving through the development phase,” Mr Macfarlane said. “CETO wave energy technology is a world-leading home grown product that has been developed over 10 years by Carnegie – it operates under water where it is safer from large storms and not visible from land.”

The submerged buoys will together form an array designed to move with the motion of the waves to drive offshore seabed pumps. The wave energy units will drive onshore hydroelectric turbines and can also feed a desalination plant, supplying fresh water without the need for electrically-driven pumps.

“It’s an impressive achievement and I understand the installation will supply power to Australia’s largest naval base, HMAS Stirling,”added Mr Macfarlane. “Australia has some of the best wave energy resources in the world with our south and south-west coast among the best in the world – it makes sense to tap into this renewable potential that will help diversify our energy mix, and that’s exactly what this project does.”

The project, scheduled for commissioning in Q2 2014, will be the first demonstration of a complete grid-connected, commercial scale CETO system anywhere in the world.

[mappress]
gov.au, April 9, 2014