Central Oregon utility backs wave power project


Central Electric Cooperative is helping fund a wave power pilot project off the coast of Reedsport.

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Central Electric Cooperative is helping fund a wave power pilot project off the coast of Reedsport.

The Redmond-based energy utility is located more than 150 miles from the ocean.

The goal, said Jeff Beaman, spokesman for Central Electric, is to study the potential of wave power. While three wave power tests were done several years ago, currently there aren’t any buoys or other devices off the coast of Oregon.

“All utilities have a growing expectation that they be involved in renewable energy development use,” Beaman said. “There are mandates, as well as public expectations.”

Under state law, a utility the size of Central Electric Cooperative, for example, needs to get 5 percent of its electricity sales from renewable energy by 2025, he said.

Read more at the Statesman Journal.

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