The company hoping to generate electricity with the action of ocean waves off the coast of the Makah reservation has received a $1 million investment from a European renewable energy firm.
AquaEnergy Ltd. of Mercer Island will use the money from Finavera Ltd. to develop a single test buoy to be deployed late this year or early next year, company president Alla Weinstein said Tuesday afternoon.
“Finavera’s investment allows us to demonstrate the AquaBuoy technology, bringing it another step closer to commercialization,” she said.
Finavera also has the option to invest an additional $3 million, which would make it a significant shareholder in AquaEnergy.
“We are excited to formalize our relationship with Finavera,” Weinstein said.
“Both companies share a vision for the future of wave energy and hope to make a significant contribution to sustainable, carbon-free energy generation,” she said.
Back to testing technology
After more than a year out of the spotlight as company officials tried to find investors, the renewable energy company has resumed efforts to test its ocean buoy technology.
Weinstein was scheduled to attend Monday’s Clallam County Public Utility District’s board of commissioners meeting, but arrived too late.
She met privately with PUD General Manager Dennis Bickford and plans another visit next month to meet with the commissioners.
Clallam PUD’s contract to buy electricity generated by the project expires soon, Bickford said.
Weinstein asked if Clallam PUD would be willing to renew its contract, he said.
Bickford said if the commissioners agree and the project is up and running, the PUD is willing to sign a new contract.
