The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has issued its first pilot project license for a tidal energy project located in New York City’s East River.
The project, owned by Verdant Power and known as the Roosevelt Island Tidal Energy Project, is rated at 1,050- kilowatts and uses the East River’s natural tidal currents to generate electricity. Turbine generator units are mounted on the riverbed and capture energy from the tidal flow. The pilot license issued to Verdant Power is for 10 years.
Underwater turbines generate clean energy from the currents of tides, rivers and manmade channels. The systems are invisible from shore and do not require dams, impoundments or major civil works. As the East River site demonstrates, underwater turbines can be sited directly within population centers with minimal public and environmental impact.
The systems operate silently and automatically, fully underwater and out of sight from shore. This aspect of the technology reduces the visual disruption, including transmission lines, and NIMBY issues related to other sources of renewable energy, especially wind farms, according to Verdant Power.
Water currents provide a predictable, if not constant, source of renewable energy. This creates an advantage over wind and solar systems, which offer intermittent power more subject to daily changes in weather and blackout scenarios. Verdant Power claims its river-based systems will achieve 80-90% capacity factors, approximately double those of wind and solar power systems.