Promising future for marine energy in Florida’s Gulf Stream

Miami-based OceanBased is working on what could be one of the largest renewable energy projects in the world.

In collaboration with the Southeast National Marine Renewable Energy Center (SNMREC) at Florida Atlantic University (FAU), OceanBased has demonstrated that clean, renewable perpetual energy can be derived by harnessing the perpetual Gulf Stream current off the coast of South Florida.

OceanBased teamed up with FAU’s SNMREC in 2019 to advance the company’s hydrokinetic research into responsible marine-based power generation.

SNMREC is one of three centers designated by the US Department of Energy to assist companies with the responsible development of marine renewables.

The goal of the project is to install hundreds of megawatts (MWs) of ocean current generating equipment.

The equipment is planned to be installed below the sea surface, below the deepest drafts of any seagoing vessels, and connected to the US transmission system.

According to OceanBased, the annual extractable ocean current energy in US waters alone is estimated to be 1.8 trillion megawatt hours (mWh).

The Florida Gulf Stream has approximately 5-6 Gigawatts of extractable energy potential.

Flowing water is nearly 800 times denser than blowing wind, which makes it more efficient and attractive as an energy source.

Ocean water is the fuel for ocean current energy, with no emissions to adversely affect the environment.

The Florida Gulf Stream current flows north 24 hours per day, and is relatively constant in velocity and direction throughout the year.

While various hydrokinetic projects worldwide focus on tidal or wave-based sources, the OceanBased demonstration is the first ever to yield energy from the Gulf Stream for a continuous 24 hours using only the water’s perpetual flow.

The findings have shown positive signs for future development of commercial applications to harness and distribute the Gulf Stream’s energy in Florida.

The team of scientists, researchers, engineers, videographers, photographers and crew aboard the vessel Go America, fielded three distinct types of ocean current energy converters (OCECs), which are turbines configured for hydrokinetic use.

The OCECs were submerged in the Gulf Stream current approximately 32 kilometres offshore between Broward and Palm Beach counties, where the water’s velocity typically ranges from 3 to 5 knots without interruption.

“This historic demonstration shows the world that the Gulf Stream can produce clean, renewable perpetual power on a 24-hour-a-day basis using a variety of turbine concepts,” said Nasser Alshemaimry, OceanBased chairman and CEO.

He added that this is the starting point for commercializing ocean current energy in the Gulf Stream, thus reducing fossil fuel dependency and benefiting our climate and the planet for generations to come.

OceanBased engineers mapped out how a subsea substation would receive incoming electricity from the Gulf Stream current flowing through the OCECs.

The electricity generated would then be transmitted through a relay substation connected by a subsea cable running 24 to 32 kilometres back to the seashore.

On land, an additional substation would connect to the national electricity grid or be tapped for other viable uses, such as powering hydrogen fuel plants, blockchain mining or server and data storage centers.

“Population growth and public desire to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and nuclear energy will continue to strengthen demand for responsible alternatives,” Alshemaimry added.

“Especially in Florida, where population continues to grow by 1,000 people per day, there is a clear need to invest in clean ocean energy technology,” he concluded.