OPT and Saab Seaeye Ink Development and Marketing Agreement

Ocean Power Technologies and Saab Seaeye have signed a non-exclusive agreement to pursue mutual opportunities through joint system solution development and marketing.

The agreement anticipates a preliminary focus on autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) and remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) charging and communications systems.

“We see a strong potential in this cooperation, where Saab Seaeye’s market-leading underwater solutions become even more capable by the addition of OPT charging solutions for resident vehicle systems,” said Matt Bates, head of Marketing & Sales at Saab Seaeye. “Collaborating with OPT, a leader in innovative ocean energy solutions, we are able to combine our individual knowledge to strengthen our position in the market.”

George Kirby, OPT president and chief executive officer said: “This agreement with Saab Seaeye is another critical step in further establishing our role as a key partner and supplier to the defense and oil and gas industries. We believe OPT’s PB3 PowerBuoy, coupled with Saab’s technologies, creates the premier unmanned system, providing remote charging capabilities for both autonomous and remotely operated vehicles. We believe the combined OPT and Saab system can revolutionize offshore subsea operations by allowing the vehicles to recharge on the sea floor and thus remain in the water longer and reduce the reliance on support from manned vessels. The unmanned system can increase the range of the vehicle, increase operational weather windows for the operators, while improving safety for the crew.”

In November 2018, OPT deployed its PB3 PowerBuoy in the Adriatic Sea to advance Eni’s research and development of proprietary integrated subsea technology systems to allow future applications for remotely controlled field developments powered by wave energy, environmental monitoring and offshore asset inspection using autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs).

The PowerBuoy will be used to demonstrate subsea battery charging, which eventually may be used to provide a standalone charging station and communications platform that would enable the long-term remote operation of AUVs.