Ocean Power Technologies shakes hands with Kuwaiti firm to explore offshore energy projects

U.S.-based Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) has secured a partnership with industrial service provider 3B General Trading & Contracting to advance Kuwait’s offshore energy and maritime projects. 

The agreement paves the way for the deployment of OPT’s wave adaptive modular vessels (WAM-Vs), unmanned surface vehicles (USVs), as well as next-generation PowerBuoys (PBs) equipped with AI-driven Merrows.

“As we continue our growth, we are excited to continue our expansion in the Middle East,” said Philipp Stratmann, CEO and President of OPT.

“The offshore energy and maritime industry market in Kuwait continues to grow and we believe our PowerBuoys and WAM-V unmanned surface vehicles coupled with AI Merrows solutions provide operators the tools to generate offshore energy and ocean intelligence more effectively, safely, and efficiently.”

OPT’s Power Buoys are wave-powered energy devices that serve as uninterruptable power supply (UPS) devices that recharge themselves by harvesting energy from waves. They are ocean-deployed, moored, and floating over the point of use.

The WAM-V is an autonomous surface vehicle (ASV) equipped with versatile capabilities, making it suitable for various maritime tasks such as data collection, surveillance, and communications.

In May, OPT reached nearly 15 MWh of renewable energy production from its fleet of PBs globally, with energy generation coming from deployments in the Atlantic, Pacific, Mediterranean, and North Sea. 

In late June, the U.S.-based marine energy company unveiled that it was selected as the preferred supplier for the wave-powered buoys to the Middle East. In September, OPT completed preparations to ship the AI-capable Merrows PowerBouy (PB) to a customer in the same region.