About Ocean Power Technologies

Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. operates as a marine power equipment, data solutions and service provider. The company controls the design, manufacture, sales, installation, operations and maintenance of its solutions and services, while working with commercial, technical, and other development partners that provide software, controls, mechatronics, sensors, integration services, and marine installation services. Its renewable autonomous ocean solutions deliver power and data collection, analysis and communication in remote ocean environments, allowing users to gather actionable intelligence with their ocean jurisdictions. Solutions and Power Generating Platform Services PB3 PowerBuoy The PB3 generates electricity by harnessing the renewable energy of ocean waves. The PB3 features an onboard power take-off (PTO) system, which incorporates both energy storage and energy management and control systems. The PB3 generates a nominal name-plated capacity rating of approximately 3 kilowatts (kW) of peak power during recharging of the onboard batteries. Power generation is deployment-site dependent. The company’s standard energy storage system (ESS) has an energy capacity of approximately a nominal 150 kW-hours to meet specific application requirements. The PB3 is designed to generate power for use independent of the power grid in remote offshore locations. The hull consists of a main spar structure loosely moored to the seabed and surrounded by a floating annular structure that could move up and down in response to the passage of the waves. The PTO system includes a mechanical actuating system, an electrical generator, a power electronics system, its control system, and its ESS, which is sealed within the hull. As ocean waves pass the PB3, the mechanical stroke action created by the rising and falling of the waves is converted into rotational mechanical energy by the PTO, which in turn, drives the electric generator. The power electronics system then conditions the electrical output, which is collected within an ESS. The operation of the PB3 is controlled by the company’s customized, proprietary control system. The control system uses sensors and an onboard computer to monitor the PB3 subsystems. In the event of large storm waves, the control system locks the PB3, and electricity generation is suspended. The PB3 could be transported over land to the deployment port using conventional transportation methods. Once at port, the PB3 could be lifted into the water or onboard a vessel using a readily available crane of appropriate capacity. The PB3 might then be towed to site using a standard vessel (if the location is within an appropriate distance from the port), or the PB3 might be carried aboard a vessel to its offshore location and craned into the water at site. The PB3 is then attached to the mooring system, which is installed during a separate operation, after which a brief commissioning process places the PB3 into operation. hybrid PowerBuoy The company has product launched a hybrid PowerBuoy that is a solar powered surface buoy, compared to the wave power generating PB3. The hybrid PowerBuoy is powered primarily through solar panels with burning external combustion Stirling engine to provide back-up power and provides power in remote offshore locations, regardless of ocean wave conditions. The hybrid generates power from both an array of solar panels and clean burning 1 kW Stirling engine fueled by liquid propane. This energy is stored in onboard batteries, which power subsea and topside payloads. The company has designed the hybrid with a Stirling engine backup system to outperform traditional diesel buoys. The towable, boat-shaped hull design of the hybrid is appropriate for deployment worldwide. Power is generated independent of wave activity, making it a major solution for providing power through extreme weather and in heaving seas, or in calm, low wave environments and is complimentary to the PB3. As with the PB3, the control system uses sensors and an onboard computer to monitor the hybrid subsystems. The hybrid is designed for use with a single point umbilical and mooring but could be adapted for a 3-point mooring installation for use as a temporary replacement for PB3 installations during planned maintenance or repairs. The hybrid could be transported over land to the deployment port using conventional transportation methods. Once at port, the hybrid could be lifted into the water or onboard a vessel using an available crane of appropriate capacity. The hybrid might then be towed to site using a standard vessel (if the location is within an appropriate distance from the port), or the hybrid might be carried aboard a vessel to its offshore location and craned into the water at site. The hybrid is then attached to the single point mooring system, which is installed during a separate operation, after which a brief commissioning process places the hybrid into operation. The hybrid is configured with a nominal 30 kW-hours of battery energy storage and approximately 1 megawatt-hour (MWh) of stored energy in the propane system. While the batteries are primarily charged through solar power generation, the propane powered Stirling engine system on the hybrid could be considered reserve energy storage, with propane having a higher energy storage density than lithium-ion batteries. It could be utilized when needed based on load demand and would provide approximately 1 MWh of stored energy capacity. Subsea Battery The company has product launched a subsea battery that is complementary to both of its PB3 and hybrid products and could be deployed together with its PowerBuoys or on its own. It offers customers the option of placing additional modular and expandable energy storage on the seabed near existing or to be installed subsea equipment. Its lithium-ion subsea batteries supply power that could enable subsea equipment, sensors, communications and autonomous underwater vehicle and electric remotely operated vehicle (eROV) recharge. The company’s PB3 and hybrid are complimentary to the subsea batteries by providing a means for recharging during longer term deployments, or the batteries could be used independently for shorter term deployments. The subsea battery is designed to provide continuous and/or short-term power supply from its integrated energy storage system, enabling it to supply into a range of industries and applications, from backup power to critical subsea infrastructure to continuous operation of subsea equipment, such as electric valves. The base design of the subsea battery has a nominal 100 kW-hours of energy storage. The subsea battery could be transported over land to the deployment port using conventional transportation methods. Once at port, the subsea battery could be lifted onboard a vessel using an available crane of appropriate capacity. The battery could then be carried aboard a vessel to its offshore location and craned into the water at site. It comes installed on a ready deployable subsea skid suitable for installation on the seabed. The subsea battery could be integrated into other subsea equipment on land prior to deployment. The battery is then connected to the other components on the seabed with the use of an eROV. Maritime Domain Awareness Solution The company intends its Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) Solution payload to consist of a high-definition radar, gyro-stabilized high-definition optical and thermal imaging cameras, vessel automatic identification system (AIS) detection, and integrated command and control software and as customer needs dictate. Capabilities include 24/7 vessel tracking, automatic radar plotting, automated vessel warnings, and high-definition optical and thermal video surveillance capable of providing evidentiary backup of activity to aid in prosecution. The company intends data from its MDA solution would be processed onboard its buoys using edge computing, developed together with its software partners, transmitted to shore-based command stations via cyber-secure Wi-Fi, cellular, and/or satellite systems, depending upon location, and then further processed in its cloud-based analytics platform. Surveillance data could be integrated with readily available marine monitoring software or with its own MDA software solution developed together with major partners in the technology industry to provide command and control features of a multi-buoy surveillance network. The data could also be integrated with satellite, weather, bathymetric, and other data feeds to form a surface and subsea picture of a monitored area. A single buoy Maritime Domain Awareness Solution, coupled with a PB3 PowerBuoy, could monitor vessel traffic, with or without AIS turned on, across an area approximately 1,300 square nautical miles of ocean territory on a permanent or temporary basis, with the ability to link multiple surveillance assets together over large ocean areas giving end-users visibility into potentially damaging environmental or illegal activities. Customized solutions are also available, including the addition of subsea sensors to monitor for acoustic signatures, tsunami, and water quality. Strategic Consulting Services In addition to work being performed by the company for the DeepStar project, through the company’s technology subsidiary, 3dent Technology, LLC (3Dent), it also offers a range of high-level offshore engineering, including providing consulting engineering and design services to offshore wind developers, offshore construction companies, drilling contractors, major oil companies, service companies, shipyards, and engineering firms. 3Dent’s team of consultants/designers engage in structural engineering, hydrodynamics and naval architecture. Among its services is a focus on addressing the issues current or would-be owners of offshore floaters, jackups, and lift boats have with their fleet. 3Dent’s services include simulation engineering, software engineering, concept design and motion analysis. Business Strategy The company is pursuing a long-term growth strategy to expand its market value proposition, while building its revenue base. This strategy includes partnerships with major companies in adjacent and complementary markets. The key elements of the company's strategy include to sell and lease its products to these markets as part of these broader integrated solutions; expand customer system solution offerings through new complimentary products; concentrate sales and marketing efforts in specific geographic markets; expand its relationships in key market areas through strategic partnerships and collaborations; and outsource fabrication, deployment and service support. Marketing and Sales The company uses a direct sales force, including employees and industry expert consultants. It markets its products and solutions to companies and entities requiring remote offshore power and data services, including offshore oil and gas companies. It also sees opportunities for defense and security applications, such as maritime domain awareness solutions that require autonomous offshore power and data gateways. Customer For the twelve months ended April 30, 2021, the company’s customers included Eni S.p.A. (Eni); Premier Oil UK Limited; EGP; ACET; Deepstar; and others. In November 2020, the company entered into an agreement with the Offshore Operators Committee under which the company would provide engineering and technical services for a new project under the DeepStar Global Technology Consortium Program. In October 2020, the company entered into an agreement with Adams Communication & Engineering Technology, Inc. (ACET) to conduct a feasibility study for the evaluation of a PB3 power and 5G communications solution in support of the U.S. Navy Naval Postgraduate School’s Sea, Land, Air, Military Research Initiative. In March 2020, Eni exercised their option from the March 2018 contract to extend their lease of the PB3 for an additional 18 months. The initial provision in March 2018 agreement provided for a minimum 24-month contract that included an 18-month PB3 lease and associated project management. In November 2020, Eni retrieved the PB3 and returned it to shore due to a mooring issue. In September 2019, the company entered two contracts with subsidiaries of Enel Green Power (EGP), which included the sale of a PB3 and the development and supply of an integrated Open Sea Lab. In March 2021, the company began the deployment process and placed the PB3 in the water. Additional deployment activities are planned in the summer of 2021. In April 2019, the company entered into an agreement with a major oil and gas operator to conduct a feasibility study of using its technology to monitor subsea wells. In February 2019, the company entered a contract with the U.S. Navy to carry out the first phase of a project to design and develop a buoy mooring system, which incorporates fiber optics for the transmission of subsea sensor data to airplanes, ships, and satellites. In June 2018, the company entered into a contract with Harbour Energy for the lease of a PB3 to be deployed in one of Harbour Energy’s offshore fields in the North Sea. During its deployment, the PB3 provided unmanned EZM service. In early March 2020, the company and Harbour Energy retrieved the PB3. Intellectual Property As of April 2021, the company had issued 66 U.S. patents, of which 41 are active, 14 have expired and 9 were abandoned. Outside of the U.S., the company has been issued 239 patents across 15 countries with 20 of the active U.S. patents having approximately one corresponding issued foreign patent. The company has filed one additional U.S. patent application as of April 29, 2020, and such patent application has four corresponding foreign patent applications at this time. Its patent portfolio includes patents and patent applications with claims directed to system design; control systems; power conversion; anchoring and mooring; and wave farm architecture. The expiration dates for the company’s issued U.S. patents range from 2021 to 2039. The company has registered its PowerBuoy, PB-Vue, PowerTower, Making Waves in Power, Talk on Water marks in the United States. History Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. was founded in 1984. The company was incorporated under the laws of the state of New Jersey in 1984 and began commercial operations in 1994. In 2007, the company reincorporated in Delaware.