ORPC NEWS      
   
  Congressman Michaud Visits Eastport Tidal Energy Site
  Date: 28th Oct, 2008
  Eastport, Maine – ORPC Maine and the University of Maine recently hosted Second District Congressman Michael H. Michaud to show first-hand the economic importance and significant progress of tidal energy development in the State of Maine. The visit to ORPC Maine’s office in Eastport, ME provided Rep. Michaud with the opportunity to experience, in person, the achievements of tidal power development in the region. “One of my priorities for this region of Maine is to encourage sustainable economic development and I recognize and appreciate the significant contributions made by ORPC Maine in their efforts to bring the environmental and economic benefits of tidal energy to the region. Creating jobs and emission-free electricity is a winning combination,” Rep. Michaud said.
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  Wave and tidal power looks for its footing
  Date: 13th Oct, 2008
  CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--The fledgling ocean energy industry is awash in ideas for making electricity from moving water but it is still reaching for a toehold in the commercial world.
Greentech Media last week released a summary of an ocean energy report that forecasts great potential for wave and tidal energy.
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Source: http://news.cnet.com
  A Maine company dives underwater to fuel the next generation of hydro power.
  Date: Oct, 2008
  More than 115 billion tons of water flows in and out of the Bay of Fundy every tide, forming dramatic waves and whirlpools as the water rises and falls 50 feet every 12 hours. On the west end of the Bay sits the easternmost village in the United States, Eastport. A beautiful but economically depressed area, Eastport relies on a handful of industries and small businesses to survive: lobstering, a mustard mill, and a wooden–boat making facility.
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Source: http://www.spiritmag.com
  Renewable energy project plans presented at conference
  Date: 19th Sep, 2008
By Edward French
  Developers of several renewable energy projects shared their plans with the public at the second annual Cobscook Bay Conference at The Boat School in Eastport on August 23. As people in communities across Maine are struggling with the upheaval in energy costs and supply, the Cobscook Bay Resource Center organized the conference to explore ways in which Maine communities might lower or stabilize costs and conserve energy.
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Source: www.cobscook.org
  Proponents of tidal power move forward off eastern Maine coast
  By Jerry Harkavy
Date: 11th Sep, 2008
  EASTPORT, Maine- Workers spent the past winter tinkering with high-tech turbines slung beneath a barge in the cold waters off the Maine coast before getting them to produce a modest 20 kilowatts, enough electricity to power a half-dozen homes.
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Source: www.chinapost.com.
  Maine offers testbed for power from tides
  By Jerry Harkavy
Date: 11th Sep, 2008
  EASTPORT, Maine - Workers spent the past winter tinkering with high-tech turbines slung beneath a barge in the cold waters off the Maine coast before getting them to produce a modest 20 kilowatts, enough electricity to power a half-dozen homes.
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Source: www.msnbc.msn.com/
  APN Tidal Power
  Date: 11th Sep, 2008
  The Ocean Renewable Power Co. barge Energy Tide 1 is seen Tuesday, July 15, 2008 in Eastport, Maine. Ocean Renewable Power Co. has been testing various turbines with a generator mounted on the barge as they work to harness tides to produce energy.
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Source: kr.news.yahoo.com
  Tidal power projects move forward in eastern Maine and around the world
  Date: 11th Sep, 2008
  EASTPORT, Maine- Workers spent the past winter tinkering with high-tech turbines slung beneath a barge in the cold waters off the Maine coast before getting them to produce a modest 20 kilowatts, enough electricity to power a half-dozen homes.
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Source: http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5h4_97bK4_urR9AP6zdke1NHyfU4g
  Tidal power moves forward in eastern Maine
  Date: 10th Sep, 2008
  EASTPORT, Maine- Workers spent the past winter tinkering with high-tech turbines slung beneath a barge in the cold waters off the Maine coast before getting them to produce a modest 20 kilowatts, enough electricity to power a half-dozen homes.
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Source: www.iht.com
  Electricity generated from tides
  Date: 09th Sep, 2008
By JERRY HARKAVY
  EASTPORT, Maine — Workers spent the past winter tinkering with high-tech turbines slung beneath a barge in the cold waters off the Maine coast before getting them to produce a modest 20 kilowatts, enough electricity to power six homes.
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Source: www.washingtontimes.com
  Tidal power moves forward in Maine
  Date: 08th Sep, 2008
By JERRY HARKAVY
  EASTPORT, Maine- Workers spent the past winter tinkering with high-tech turbines slung beneath a barge in the cold waters off the Maine coast before getting them to produce a modest 20 kilowatts, enough electricity to power a half-dozen homes.
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Source: http://nbbusinessjournal.canadaeast.com/journal/article/408061
  Oceans of Opportunity
  Date: 08th Sep, 2008
  Ocean Renewable Power Co. says that the waters off Maine's coastline will provide the foundation by which it can spawn a new generation of electricity. Its project there will start small and build over time. In the long term they say that the plant, to be placed in the Passamaquoddy Bay, would produce as much as 20 megawatts.
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Source: www.energycentral.com
  Tidal power projects move forward
  Date: 07th Sep, 2008
By JERRY HARKAVY
  EASTPORT, Maine-Workers spent the past winter tinkering with high-tech turbines slung beneath a barge in the cold waters off the Maine coast before getting them to produce a modest 20 kilowatts, enough electricity to power a half-dozen homes.
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Source: http://cnews.canoe.ca
  Tidal power projects move forward in eastern Maine and around the world
  Date: 07th Sep, 2008
By JERRY HARKAVY
  EASTPORT, Maine- Workers spent the past winter tinkering with high-tech turbines slung beneath a barge in the cold waters off the Maine coast before getting them to produce a modest 20 kilowatts, enough electricity to power a half-dozen homes.
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Source: www.mjtimes.sk.ca
  Tides a key to energy future
  Date: 03rd Sep, 2008
By Jerry Harkavy
  EASTPORT, Maine -- Workers spent the past winter tinkering with high-tech turbines slung beneath a barge off the Maine coast before getting them to produce a modest 20 kilowatts, enough electricity to power a half-dozen homes.
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Source: www.dispatch.com
  Tidal Power Making Waves In Quest For Energy
  Date: 29th Aug, 2008
By JERRY HARKAVY
  EASTPORT, Maine — Workers spent the past winter tinkering with high-tech turbines slung beneath a barge in the cold waters off the Maine coast before getting them to produce a modest 20 kilowatts, enogh electricity to power a half-dozen homes.
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Source: www.courant.com
  Tidal power advances in eastern Maine
  Date: 24th Aug, 2008
By JERRY HARKAVY
  EASTPORT — Workers spent the past winter tinkering with high-tech turbines slung beneath a barge in the cold waters off the Maine coast before getting them to produce a modest 20 kilowatts, enough electricity to power a half-dozen homes.
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Source: www.bangordailynews.com
   
  For links to all the articles on ORPC, published on August 24, 2008, please Click Here...
  The Ellsworth American Harnessing the Tides
  Date: 21st Aug, 2008
  EASTPORT — You don’t need a graduate degree in fluid dynamics or hydrokinetics to appreciate the energy inherent in the sea.

Alternative energy is becoming a very common topic of discussion.  In Eastport, Maine, you can witness a prime example of alternative Energy: a tidal energy test site, in Cobscook Bay.
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Source: www.ellsworthmaine.com
  Tide is slowly rising in interest in ocean power
  Date: 01st Aug, 2008
  Renewable energy analysts suspect the world’s ocean waves could provide two terawatts of electricity per year — about one-seventh of the estimated world energy consumption in 2007 — yet unlike wind turbines and photovoltaics, the technology for converting that potential into electricity is still in its infancy.
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Source: Mass High Tech
  Energy Tide I Turbine-Generator Unit prototype testing complete
  Date: 31st July, 2008
By North American Clean Energy
  Ocean Renewable Power Company, LLC (ORPC) has successfullt completed the at-sea testing of its prototype turbine-generator unit (TGU) with results that positively demonstrate teh technical feasibility of the TGU. The testing was conducted at ORPC's Cobscook Bay and Western Passage tidal energy sites in Eastport, ME.
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Source: North American Clean Energy (turn to page# 47)
  Power company delays test of Knik Arm tidal generator
ELECTRICITY: One in Maine performed, but less than expected.
  Date: 25th July, 2008
By RINDI WHITE
  WASILLA -- A tidal generator planned for testing in the Knik Arm this year might not hit the water until 2011, according to project leaders at Ocean Renewable Power Company.
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Source: www.adn.com
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  Firm tests new tidal power equipment in the Eastport area
  Date: 03rd Jul, 2008
  Could electric power generated from tidal currents in Passamaquoddy and Cobcook Bays be suffiecient to take Eastport and, possibly, Washington County off the power grid? Ocean Renewable Power Company (ORPC) and eastport officials are betting it can.
 

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  Testing Tidal Energy
  Date: 28th May, 2008
  A proprietary turbine-generator unit (TGU) designed to harness the energy-producing power of tidal and ocean currents is being tested off the coast of Eastport, Maine.
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Source: www.wef.org
  Cook Inlet Tides May be Power Source.
  Date: 05th Apr 2008
  The Water around Anchorage have some of the strongest tides in North America, and a Boston company is hoping to use them to generate electrical power.
 

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MTI Awards more Funds for Tidal Project.
  Date: 28th Mar 2008
  ORPC Maine LLC has received an additional $200,000 Development Award from the Maine Technology Institute (MTI) to continue the commercial development of its technology to generate power from tidal currents and created the environment and economic benefits of capturing renewable energy in Maine and elsewhere. This is the second Development Award ORPC Maine has received from MTI.
 

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  The Greening of the Land
  Date: 28th Mar 2008
  Although the weight of winter is beginning to wear us down, signs of spring will soon be sprouting forth, giving us hope once again. The gray, drab days of March slowly will be overtaken by hints of color, shades of green and tinges of a multitute of hues. The greening of landscape, in turn, may be a harbinger of the greening of our economy and our way of life.
 

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  Institute Funds Tidal Current Energy Testing
  Date: 13th Mar 2008
  The Maine Technology Institute awarded an additional $200,000 to ORPC Maine, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Ocean Renewable Power Company, LLC, for commercial development of its technology to generate power from tidal currents.
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Source: www.eponline.com
  Finch Welcomes ORPC Award
  Date: 06th Mar 2008
By: Carol- Ann Nicholson
  EASTPORT- City Manager George "Bud" Finch says one piece of good news for the city is that ORPC Maine has received an additional $200K Development Award from the Maine Technology Institute.
 

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  Energy firms nets award: Money to fund ocean technology
  Date: 05th March 2008
By: Diana Graettinger (Bangor Daily News)
  EASTPORT-A Tampa, Florida company that hopes to harness the energy-producing power of tidal and ocean currents here has received a $200,000 Development Award from the Maine Technology Institute, COmpany officials announced Monday.
 

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  ORPC Maine Receives Additional $200K from the Maine Technology Institute
  Date: 04th March 2008
  Portland, Maine – ORPC Maine, LLC (ORPC Maine), a wholly owned subsidiary of Ocean Renewable Power Company, LLC, has announced it has received an additional $200,000 Development Award from the Maine Technology Institute (MTI) to continue the commercial development of its technology to generate power from tidal currents and create the environmental and economic benefits of capturing renewable energy from these indigenous, carbon free, sustainable energy resources in Maine and elsewhere.  This is the second Development Award ORPC Maine has received from MTI.
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  N.E. energy firms work to harness ocean's motion
  Date: 15th Feb 2008
  As scientists and entrepreneurs turn their sights to natural phenomena such as the sun and wind to alleviate the nation's dependence on fossil fuels, some New Englanders -- well versed in both the power and fury of the sea -- are turning their attention to the oceans to help solve the problem.
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Source: http://masshightech.bizjournals.com
  Tidal Power Firm explains pilot project
  Date: 25th Jan 2008
By: Marie Jones Holmes
  A status report on an innovative new technology design to harness the energy generating potential of ocean tidal currents was discussed at an open house held January 16 at Ocean Renewable Power Company's (ORPC) Eastport office.
 

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  ORPC Project Is Unique and Exciting Tidal Power Device
  Date: 24th Jan 2008
  EASTPORT - Ocean Renewable Power Company (ORPC Maine) Held a community reception at office on Washington Street, Wednesday night, January 16.
 

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  Ocean Renewable Power Secures Lead Investment from Quercus Trust
  Date: 18th Jan 2008
  Fall River, MA – Ocean Renewable Power Company, today announced that it has secured an additional $1 million in funding in the form of a convertible preferred equity bridge financing from California-based Quercus Trust.

Today's announcement provides additional funding for the development of Ocean Renewable Power Company's (ORPC) proprietary technology for the generation of electric power from ocean tidal resources. Potential for tidal energy capacity in the United States and Canada is as high as 20,000 megawatts.
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  U.S. developer resumes testing of Maine tidal energy unit
  Date: 14th Jan 2008
  EASTPORT, Maine, U.S. 1/14/08 (HCI) — Ocean Renewable Power Co. announced Jan. 9 it resumed testing of a proprietary turbine-generator off the coast of Eastport following poor weather that suspended testing.
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  Tidal generator testing resumes off Eastport
  Date: 11th Jan 2008
By Diana Graettinger
Bangor Daily News
  EASTPORT, Maine — Bad weather and the holidays delayed testing of the turbine-generator unit designed to harness the energy-producing power of tidal and ocean currents, but the project is back on course, according to the company running it.
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Source: www.bangornews.com
  Ocean Renewable Power Testing of Tidal Energy Prototype Continues in Maine
  Date: 08th Jan 2008
 
Fall River, Mass., January 8, 2008 – Following temporary weather, holiday and startup delays, the company testing a proprietary turbine-generator unit (TGU) designed to harness the energy-producing power of tidal and ocean currents announced today it has resumed testing off the coast of Eastport, Maine.

Early last December, Ocean Renewable Power Company (ORPC) launched “Energy Tide 1,” a barge specially retrofitted to accommodate the TGU and testing assembly, and began a series of preliminary tests to help determine design capabilities, efficiency, and performance of the prototype TGU. After experiencing the worst weather for December in Maine’s history, however, testing could be safely conducted on only a few of the days prior to the end-of-year holidays.
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  Tidal power generating unit launched in waters off Eastport
  Date: 08th Dec 2007
By Edward French
 

“I hereby christen you the Energy Tide One," proclaimed Eastport fifth-grader Willi Hopkins as a bucket of seawater, instead of champagne, was poured on the bow at the naming of the barge for testing a prototype tidal power generation unit at Maine's Marine Technology Center in Eastport on December 5. Ocean Renewable Power Company (ORPC) President Chris Sauer then declared, echoing the Quoddy dream of the past century, "May you bring us the power of the sea." He told the 10-year-old boy, who plans to be either a tidal power engineer or an archaeologist, that he hoped that, by the time he is in college, tidal energy would be providing power for schools, homes and businesses throughout New England and the Maritime provinces.
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Source: http://quoddytides.com

 

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  We're in the Water!
  Date: 08th Dec 2007
  ORPC Maine, the regional development company of Ocean Renewable Power Company, LLC, has successfully launched its Turbine-Generator Unit (TGU), the ORPC Maine Energy Tide I, at 9:45 a.m. Saturday, December 8, 2007. ORPC Maine plans to test the unit over a three-week period. Please check back for updates on our progress!.
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  Eastport: Tidal current energy prototype to launch today
  Date: 07th Dec 2007
By Diana Graettinger
Bangor Daily News
 

A Florida company that wants to demonstrate the feasibility of harnessing the energy-generating potential of tidal currents expects to launch a prototype turbine-generator unit today that they hope will do the job.
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Source: www.bangornews.com

  Ocean Renewable Power, looking to raise $12M for ocean power
  Date: 26th Nov 2007
By Matt Marshall
 

Ocean Renewable Power Co., a Fall River, Mass. company that uses ocean waves to generate electricity, is about to launch its first pilot turbine, and is reportedly in the process of raising $12 million in financing.
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Source: www.venturebeat.com

  Maine to get first tidal turbine test
Mass High Tech: The Journal of New England Technology - by Efrain Viscarolasaga Mass High Tech
  Date: 23rd Nov 2007
 

After three years and more than $1 million, Maine's first tidal turbine generator, developed by Fall River-based Ocean Renewable Power Co. LLC, is expected to get wet in early December.
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Source: http://masshightech.bizjournals.com

  Three ORPC Patent Applications Filed November 2007
  Date: 22nd Nov 2007
  Three utility applications were filed in October and November 2007 by Ocean Renewable Power Company. The first application filed on October 19, 2007 related to the provisional patent application filed by ORPC in October 2006 and relates to the proprietary permanent magnet generator and the unique design features of the Turbine-Generator Unit (TGU).
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  Energy from Ocean Currents? Prototype of New Technology Launching in December
  Date: 14th Nov 2007
  Eastport, Maine, November 14, 2007 – An innovative new technology designed to harness the energy-generating potential of ocean tidal currents – long dreamed about by mariners and environmentalists alike – will be making a major splash near the end of the year when a Massachusetts-based company submerges its prototype Turbine-Generator Unit (TGU) off the coast of Eastport, Maine.
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  Energy firms study tidal power at Canada's Deer Island
  Date: 12th Nov 2007
Colin Woodard, Chronicle Foreign Service
 
Sea Power. Chronicle graphic by John Blanchard and Todd T...

New Brunswick - Tides are a fact of life on the Bay of Fundy: They flow around this Canadian island in reversible rivers, currents smashing together in a violent chop in one place and creating whirlpools in others, including the hemisphere's largest.

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Source: www.sfgate.com

  Outside company testing Cook Inlet tides as energy source
  Date: 28th Oct 2007
By Tim Bradner
Alaska Journal of Commerce
 

Cook Inlet has some of the strongest tides in North America, and for decades Alaskans have wondered if the force of all that moving water could be harnessed to produce electricity.

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Source:www.alaskajournal.com

  The Second Act.
The show by and for MAINERS
  Date: 01st Oct 2007
  An Interview with Chris Sauer, President & CEO, ORPC.
  Watch Video
  Ocean Renewable Power Company Announces Its Redesigned Website.
  Date: 24th Sep 2007
By ksmith
  Fall River, Massachusetts — Ocean Renewable Power Company, LLC (ORPC) is pleased to announce the debut of its redesigned and expanded website www.OceanRenewablePower.com. ORPC is a leading tidal energy developer and the new website reflects the significant progress they have made in the development of their Ocean Current Generation (OCGen™) technology and their tidal energy projects. It clearly articulates their vision for commercialization of the OCGen™ technology and implementation of OCGen™ projects.
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Source: www.camirl.com
  An Ocean of Energy.
Generating electricity from tidal flows and wave action
  Date: 20th Sep 2007
  Harnessing the constant motion of waves, tides, and currents to generate electricity has long been one of the holy grails of energy futurists. Now, thanks to advances in technology and a nationwide push for renewable energy, that dream appears to be closer to reality than ever before — with East Coast residents likely to see the greatest gains in Florida and Maine.
 

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  Tidal power and Bay of Fundy.
  Date: 15th Sep 2007
 

CBC 6:O’Clock News story on tidal energy | Watch Video

CBC 10:00 pm tidal energy story on The Nation | Watch Video

  Source: CBC News
   
  Two tidal projects proposed off coast of Maine.
  Date: 30th Aug 2007
  The city of Eastport, Maine, and tidal power developer ORPC Maine, LLC are pursuing the development of two tidal projects off the coast of Maine 18.96 - MW Western Passage OCGen™ Project and 23.7 MW Cobscook Bay OCGen™ Power.
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  Updates on three tidal power proposals for area presented.
  Date: 30th Aug 2007
By Marie Jones Holmes
  Updates on three proposals for generating electricity using tidal power were presented at an August 4 meeting sponsored by Cobscook Bay Resource Center of Eastport, which is acting as a clearing house for tidal power information as part of their Renewable Energy Initiative.
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  Rise in Tidal-Power Projects Outside U.S.
  Date: 24th Aug 2007
By Colin Woodard | CBS News
  Chris Sauer

Tides are a fact of life on the Bay of Fundy, and here more than most places. Strong enough to carry a small sailboat backward, they flow around this island in reversible rivers. Currents smash together in a violent chop or conspire to create whirlpools — including the hemisphere's largest.


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Source: www.cbsnews.com

  Permits granted to test tides for energy potential
  Date: 23th April 2007
By Rindi White | Anchorage Daily News
 

PALMER -- Next year, Ocean Renewable Power Co. wants to hang a 20-foot miniature tidal generator off a floating platform in the Knik Arm narrows to see if it will generate power.

If the Knik Arm test project works, Sauer said Ocean would be back in 2009 with a full-scale prototype, prepared for a yearlong test. If that works, a four-generator module, roughly 60
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Source: www.adn.com

  ORPC Secures Permit for Two Alaska Sites: Clean Tidal Energy.
  Date: 23rd April 2007
 

April 23, 2007-Anchorage, Alaska. ORPC Alaska, LLC has received preliminary permits from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to develop tidal energy projects in Cook Inlet and Resurrection Bay.
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  U.S. company to harness tides off southern N.B.
  Date: 06th March 2007
 

U.S. company plans to generate electricity with new technology by tapping the tides of Passamaquoddy Bay, an inlet of the Bay of Fundy surrounded by New Brunswick and Maine.
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Source: www.cbc.ca

  Tidal power company captures funding for engineering costs
  Date: 23rd, February, 2007
By Edward French
  A company based in Miami, Florida, that is looking at developing two tidal energy sites in Western Passage and Cobscook Bay off Eastport has been awarded a grant to fund engineering costs for the installation of a prototype turbine generator. Ocean Renewable Power Company Maine LLC (ORPC Maine), which has signed a partnership agreement with the City of Eastport, has received a $300,000 development award from the Maine Technology Institute (MTI) for the engineering of the prototype project before a full-scale commercial project is installed.