Ocean Thermal Energy Corporation (OTE) has appointed an international lawyer and consultant Dan Slone to its advisory board.
The US-based renewable energy developer, focused on ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) and seawater air conditioning (SWAC) technologies – OTE – said Slone ’s experience in development of innovative projects will contribute to the advancement of the company’s green projects around the world.
Slone has represented, or been on the board of, many nonprofits, including the US Green Building Council, the Congress for the New Urbanism, the World Green Building Council, Greenroofs for Healthy Cities, the Resilient Design Institute, and EcoDistricts, according to OTE. Currently, Slone works from Virginia office of Vertical Vision, a firm he co-founded.
Jeremy P. Feakins , Chairman and CEO of OTE, said: “Dan’s legal expertise and green construction experience has raised the awareness of both professionals and the public in creating greener communities. Dan will be an important addition to our team as we continue to advance our OTEC EcoVillage and sustainable community projects around the world.”
OTEC is a clean energy technology that leverages the temperature difference in the ocean between cold deep water and warm surface water in the tropics and subtropics to generate unlimited energy without the use of fossil fuels. SWAC technology, on the other hand, produces air conditioning without the use of chemical agents.
Acting alone, SWAC can reduce electricity usage by up to 90% when compared to traditional air conditioning systems, according to OTE.
Based on OTEC and SWAC technologies, the company is developing the EcoVillage concept which entails a global network of carbon-neutral eco-resorts.
Powered by clean energy from deep ocean, the concept is supported by integrated technologies for community benefit such as fresh water production, and aquaculture, among others.
The first OTEC EcoVillage is targeted for the US Virgin Islands where OTE has received regulatory approvals to develop the project.