U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski has welcomed the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approval of the final installation and operation of a river marine renewable energy project in Igiugig, Alaska.
“ I am so pleased this project will be able to move forward, reducing local diesel consumption and energy prices,” Lisa Murkowski said. “Igiugig’s efforts are blazing a trail for marine renewable energy and microgrid solutions around the world – when we prove these technologies can work in rural Alaska, we are proving they can work just about anywhere else on the planet.”
The Igiugig MRE Project will produce emission-free electricity by converting the energy of river currents into a reliable source of electricity.
The Igiugig Village Council is the first tribal entity in the United States to achieve this approval. The Council and the Ocean Renewable Power Company (ORPC), based in Maine, have collaborated on the MRE project since 2009.
Earlier this week ÉireComposites completed the turbines for ORPC’s RivGen Power System slated for installation in the Kvichak River, Igiugig, Alaska.
FERC approval was achieved through the agency’s pilot license process, established to encourage development of innovative hydrokinetic technology while ensuring appropriate environmental monitoring is in place.
The RivGen Power System project is scheduled to be installed later this summer once permits from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Alaska Department of Natural Resources, and Alaska Lake and Peninsula Borough are approved.