NNMREC Holds Open House for Pacific Marine Energy Center

Last week, the Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center (NNMREC) held a public meeting at the Hatfield Marine Science Center Visitor Center regarding the Pacific Marine Energy Center, a new ocean testing facility.

NNMREC Holds Open House for Pacific Marine Energy Center
NNMREC, which is a partnership between Oregon State University (OSU) and the University of Washington (UW), is working on a Pacific Marine Energy Center: South Energy Test Site (PMEC-SETS), which will be located approximately six miles offshore to the south of Newport and connected to the electrical grid.Even though the construction is still a long way off, the public got a chance to share its opinion and to get more information about this project.

PMEC-SETS will consist of four test berths, where wave energy devices will be anchored and moored.

In order to proceed with the project, NNMREC needs to acquire licences from the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and a research lease from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM).

The open ocean test facility for prototype and commercial scale wave energy converters in the US is expected to be available in 2017.

Offshore WIND staff, May 26, 2014; Image: NNMREC