PORT ANGELES — Developers of an ocean wave energy project to be located off the Makah Reservation pitched their proposal Monday to the Clallam County Public Utility District commissioners, staff and about 20 audience members.
Only 20 places on Earth have ocean waves strong enough for such a project, said G^pgran Fredrikson, vice president of technology and operations for AquaEnergy Group Ltd. of Mercer Island.
The Cape Flattery area is the best location in the United States, he said.
AquaEnergy is part of a consortium that includes the Clallam County Public Utility District, the Makah tribe and the Northwest Energy Innovation Center comprised of the Bonneville Power Administration, Energy Northwest, Batelle Memorial Institute and Washington State University.
The PUD has agreed to buy electrical power from a $2.5 million, 1-megawatt demonstration plant to be located off Waatch Point.
The energy is enough to power about 1,000 homes for a year.
“It’s great to see this level of interest,” said Fred Mitchell, PUD assistant general manager, said at Monday afternoon’s meeting which outlined the project.
“We don’t get this many people when we raise rates.”
The rest of this story appears in today’s Peninsula Daily News Clallam County edition. Click on “Subscribe” to get the PDN delivered to your home or office.
