PG&E WaveConnect Program.

摘要

The PG&E WaveConnect project was intended to demonstrate the technical and economic viability of wave power in the open ocean adjacent to PG&E's service territory. WaveConnect was conceived as a multi-stage development process leading to long-term megawatt-scale wave power production. The first-stage tasks consisted of site selection, permitting, pilot plant design, and assessment of technology and commercial readiness. The second stage would have included development of infrastructure, undersea cabling, and deployment of wave energy conversion devices (WECs). In the third stage, the most promising WEC devices would have been deployed in larger quantities and connected to the grid. The program was halted near the end of the first stage for reasons described below. This report documents the findings of Stage One, which was funded by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) for $4.8 million and by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for $1.2 million, for a total of $6 million.