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| title | chunk | source | category | tags | date_saved | instance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ocean thermal energy conversion | 6/10 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_thermal_energy_conversion | reference | science, encyclopedia | 2026-05-05T07:35:54.854158+00:00 | kb-cron |
=== Hainan === On April 13, 2013, Lockheed contracted with the Reignwood Group to build a 10 megawatt plant off the coast of southern China to provide power for a planned resort on Hainan island. A plant of that size would power several thousand homes. The Reignwood Group acquired Opus Offshore in 2011 which forms its Reignwood Ocean Engineering division which also is engaged in development of deepwater drilling.
=== Japan === Currently the only continuously operating OTEC system is located in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The Governmental support, local community support, and advanced research carried out by Saga University were key for the contractors, IHI Plant Construction Co. Ltd, Yokogawa Electric Corporation, and Xenesys Inc, to succeed with this project. Work is being conducted to develop a 1MW facility on Kume Island requiring new pipelines. In July 2014, more than 50 members formed the Global Ocean reSource and Energy Association (GOSEA) an international organization formed to promote the development of the Kumejima Model and work towards the installation of larger deep seawater pipelines and a 1MW OTEC Facility. The companies involved in the current OTEC projects, along with other interested parties have developed plans for offshore OTEC systems as well. - For more details, see "Currently Operating OTEC Plants" above.
=== United States Virgin Islands === On March 5, 2014, Ocean Thermal Energy Corporation (OTEC) and the 30th Legislature of the United States Virgin Islands (USVI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding to move forward with a study to evaluate the feasibility and potential benefits to the USVI of installing on-shore Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) renewable energy power plants and Seawater Air Conditioning (SWAC) facilities. The benefits to be assessed in the USVI study include both the baseload (24/7) clean electricity generated by OTEC, as well as the various related products associated with OTEC and SWAC, including abundant fresh drinking water, energy-saving air conditioning, sustainable aquaculture and mariculture, and agricultural enhancement projects for the Islands of St Thomas and St Croix. On July 18, 2016, OTE's application to be a Qualifying Facility was approved by the Virgin Islands Public Services Commission. OTE also received permission to begin negotiating contracts associated with this project.
=== Kiribati === South Korea's Research Institute of Ships and Ocean Engineering (KRISO) received approval in principle from Bureau Veritas for their 1MW offshore OTEC design. No timeline was given for the project which will be located 6 km offshore of the Republic of Kiribati.
=== Martinique === Akuo Energy and DCNS were awarded NER300 funding on July 8, 2014 for their NEMO (New Energy for Martinique and Overseas) project which is expected to be a 10.7MW-net offshore facility completed in 2020. The award to help with development totaled 72 million Euro.
=== Maldives === On February 16, 2018, Global OTEC Resources announced plans to build a 150 kW plant in the Maldives, designed bespoke for hotels and resorts. "All these resorts draw their power from diesel generators. Moreover, some individual resorts consume 7,000 litres of diesel a day to meet demands which equates to over 6,000 tonnes of CO2 annually," said Director Dan Grech. The EU awarded a grant and Global OTEC resources launched a crowdfunding campaign for the rest.
== Related activities == OTEC has uses other than power production.
=== Desalination === Desalinated water can be produced in open- or hybrid-cycle plants using surface condensers to turn evaporated seawater into potable water. System analysis indicates that a 2-megawatt plant could produce about 4,300 cubic metres (150,000 cu ft) of desalinated water each day. Another system patented by Richard Bailey creates condensate water by regulating deep ocean water flow through surface condensers correlating with fluctuating dew-point temperatures. This condensation system uses no incremental energy and has no moving parts. On March 22, 2015, Saga University opened a Flash-type desalination demonstration facility on Kumejima. This satellite of their Institute of Ocean Energy uses post-OTEC deep seawater from the Okinawa OTEC Demonstration Facility and raw surface seawater to produce desalinated water. Air is extracted from the closed system with a vacuum pump. When raw sea water is pumped into the flash chamber it boils, allowing pure steam to rise and the salt and remaining seawater to be removed. The steam is returned to liquid in a heat exchanger with cold post-OTEC deep seawater. The desalinated water can be used in hydrogen production or drinking water (if minerals are added). The NELHA plant established in 1993 produced an average of 7,000 gallons of freshwater per day. KOYO USA was established in 2002 to capitalize on this new economic opportunity. KOYO bottles the water produced by the NELHA plant in Hawaii. With the capacity to produce one million bottles of water every day, KOYO is now Hawaii's biggest exporter with $140 million in sales.[81]
=== Air conditioning ===
The 41 °F (5 °C) cold seawater made available by an OTEC system creates an opportunity to provide large amounts of cooling to industries and homes near the plant. The water can be used in chilled-water coils to provide air conditioning for buildings. It is estimated that a pipe 1 foot (0.30 m) in diameter can deliver 4,700 gallons of water per minute. Water at 43 °F (6 °C) could provide more than enough air conditioning for a large building. Operating 8,000 hours per year in lieu of electrical conditioning selling for 5–10¢ per kilowatt-hour, it would save $200,000-$400,000 in energy bills annually. The InterContinental Resort and Thalasso-Spa on the island of Bora Bora uses an SWAC system to air-condition its buildings. The system passes seawater through a heat exchanger where it cools freshwater in a closed loop system. This freshwater is then pumped to buildings and directly cools the air. In 2010, Copenhagen Energy opened a district cooling plant in Copenhagen, Denmark. The plant delivers cold seawater to commercial and industrial buildings, and has reduced electricity consumption by 80 percent. Ocean Thermal Energy Corporation (OTE) has designed a 9800-ton SDC system for a vacation resort in The Bahamas.