The Tides are Turning for Alternative Energy

At peak flow, ten megawatts is the amount of power Taylor anticipates his project will supply to New York City after its final phase of expansion is completed. While still several years away, this could fulfill the electricity needs of over 8,000 households in the city.

Verdant Power completed the operational and environmental monitoring phase of its project this September, with retrofits to two of six arrayed turbines. The East River’s four-knot current had sheered blades and popped bolts from the company’s first generations of turbines, in what Taylor calls the “best unplanned experiment.” Over the last three months, the updated turbines have proved to withstand, and more efficiently harness, the river’s swiftness.

“We’re on a fast march with each generation,” says Taylor. His company recently filed for a permit from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to put 30 turbines in the water, and Taylor expects this phase to be underway by 2010.

Once in place, the 30-turbine field will be “the largest renewables installation in New York City,” says Hammer. The one megawatt of expected energy capacity is three times that of the current city leader, a solar energy project.

A second field will follow on the west side of the island — potentially in the United Nations security zone. The UN, which passed a resolution to lower its carbon footprint, could be a future customer, Taylor suggests.

Taylor does note that the project can be slow moving at times, especially due to the high costs of being a start-up company working in uncharted waters.

“While we’re in the water generating power, we are making a little bit of money to pay for additional studies,” he says. This includes looking into other sites around the city for tidal energy projects.

Of course, Verdant Power is not the only company in the river; Taylor has some healthy competition.

A short walk north along the river leads you to Roosevelt Island’s Lighthouse Park. Visible off this northernmost point is Hell’s Gate, a narrow channel where two other companies, Natural Currents and Oceana, have begun testing turbine designs that resemble eggbeaters and jet engines.

Roger Bason, president of Natural Currents, actually worked as a subcontractor for Verdant Power in its early days, but separated from them four years ago to pursue a different tidal technology. His eggbeater prototype uses only unidirectional movement, which he suggests eliminates the four tide change rotations a day that may wear on Verdant Power’s turbines.

“I know [Verdant Power],” says Bason. “I felt that their technology was not optimal and would fail.”

Taylor maintains his model is more ideal for the East River’s conditions. However, he does like the idea of others working towards the same goal.

“Having competitors creates a viable industry,” says Taylor. He highlights the benefits of “creating all kinds of shapes and sizes and different configurations” until the most efficient and economical is found.

This strategy is well known in the automobile industry, where competition drives innovation, leading to improved standards of safety and fuel-efficiency.

While few vehicles cruise down Main Street on Roosevelt Island, Taylor points out the presence of some electric cars. His face glows. “I get titillated by the thought that when they’re plugging into the [Motorgate parking] garage, they’re plugging into tidal power.”

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