Ocean Power Technologies Announces New Contract with the U.S. Department of Defense Office of Naval Research
September 14 2016 - 09:18AM
Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:OPTT)
(“OPT” or “the Company”) announced today that it has been awarded a
contract (or “Contract”), valued at nearly $250,000, by the U.S.
Department of Defense Office of Naval Research (“ONR”) to conduct
the design of a new mass-spring oscillating PowerBuoy for mission
critical sensors. Such a PowerBuoy differs from the current
PB3 type in that it is self-contained and has no external moving
components. Phase one of the contract scope includes the system
design and laboratory testing of a proprietary, self-contained,
inertia-based, mass-spring oscillator and power take-off (“PTO”),
and for the selection of a station keeping propulsion solution to
be integrated into the PowerBuoy. The contract allows for two
subsequent phases, valued together at nearly $750,000, which are
dependent upon the successful completion of phase one and
additional ONR funding. This future scope would include the
detailed design of the entire power conversion system, power
generation system, and the PowerBuoy hull, as well as testing of
the mass-spring oscillating PTO, and the build and integration of a
full PowerBuoy system that is ready for ocean deployment.
George H. Kirby, President and Chief Executive Officer of OPT,
stated, “We are excited to work with the Office of Naval Research
on this new contract. OPT already has several patented solutions
for mass-spring oscillating designs, and we hope to leverage this
technical expertise to address ONR’s needs. We believe that
an inertia-based PTO could provide advantages to OPT in the
autonomous offshore power marketplace and could enable a new
product line of buoys and modules.”
OPT’s self-contained PowerBuoy concept was first developed to
address the Navy’s need for an easily deployable, persistent
solution for powering multiple sensors while also responding to
other specific mission critical needs. Advantages of this
solution concept in security and defense applications are its low
profile, and that it can be tailored to meet various mission
specifics, including underwater applications. Additionally,
this solution concept does not need to be anchored to the ocean
floor, making it well suited for rapid deployment without regard to
water depth. The expected duration of this first phase of the ONR
contract is nine months.
Dr. Mike M. Mekhiche, OPT's Executive Vice President of
Engineering and Operations, stated, “This PTO is part of an
anchorless, station keeping, low profile PowerBuoy® that would
power mission critical sensors and the buoy’s control and
propulsion systems. The objective of this first phase is to
design and optimize the inertia based generation system, evaluate
the buoy propulsion system, and carry out performance testing of
critical PTO components. The proposed system is scalable and once
completed, could expand OPT’s product portfolio with more product
options into the commercial and defense markets.”
About Ocean Power Technologies
Headquartered in Pennington, New Jersey, Ocean
Power Technologies (NASDAQ:OPTT) is a pioneer in ocean wave energy
conversion. OPT’s proprietary PowerBuoy® technology is based on a
scalable and modular design. OPT specializes in
cost-effective and environmentally sound ocean wave based power
generation and management technology.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release may contain "forward-looking
statements" that are within the safe harbor provisions of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking
statements are identified by certain words or phrases such as
"may", "will", "aim", "will likely result", "believe", "expect",
"will continue", "anticipate", "estimate", "intend", "plan",
"contemplate", "seek to", "future", "objective", "goal", "project",
"should", "will pursue" and similar expressions or variations of
such expressions. These forward-looking statements reflect the
Company's current expectations about its future plans and
performance. These forward-looking statements rely on a number of
assumptions and estimates which could be inaccurate and which are
subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results could vary
materially from those anticipated or expressed in any
forward-looking statement made by the Company. Please refer to the
Company's most recent Forms 10-Q and 10-K and subsequent filings
with the SEC for a further discussion of these risks and
uncertainties. The Company disclaims any obligation or intent to
update the forward-looking statements in order to reflect events or
circumstances after the date of this release.
Company Contact:
Matthew T. Shafer,
Chief Financial Officer of OPT
Phone: 609-730-0400
Investor Relations Contact:
Andrew Barwicki
Barwicki Investor Relations Inc.
Phone: 516-662-9461
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