The 80 ton device, capable of generating 20kW of electricity, was due to start a year long trial this week at a location five miles offshore from Southwold. The platform was recovered, connected to a tug and deliberately grounded in a safe location three miles southeast of the Southwold harbour entrance.
Trident Energy is making arrangements to move the platform to a suitable location where any damage can be fully assessed. The company said, ‘Trident Energy can confirm that the incident was in no ay related to its patented technology to convert sea wave energy into electricity.’
The 18m high prototype model’s trial is due to set the stage for deployment of a full scale commercial rig capable of generating at least 1MW of electricity. The device has only one moving part and uses a linear motor to generate electricity from the waves. Pistons attached to the rig capture the swell of the waves to power a generator atop the structure which produces 230 volt AC electricity. The rig was to be anchored to the seabed, with floats holding the top of the structure 3m above the water as the rig rotates to capture the travelling motion of the waves.
The device was invented by Trident Energy founder and technological director Hugh-Peter Kelly and has been developed over five years, which included collaboration with technicians from Cambridge University.
