OPT widens second-quarter loss

Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) has booked a net loss for the second quarter of fiscal year 2018 which is 62% wider when compared to the same period a year earlier.

The net loss filed by the US-based wave energy developer OPT for the second quarter which ended on October 31, 2017, was $2.6 million, against the net loss of $1 million reported for the corresponding period last year.

However, excluding the net change in the fair value of the warrants liability of $2.0 million, OPT’s net loss decreases, mainly due to lower product development costs in this quarter, according to the company.

The revenue for the quarter was $94,000, which marks a decrease of 44% on the last year’s figures for the same period, when the reported revenue amounted to $177,000.

George Kirby, President and Chief Executive Officer of OPT, said: “The original six-month lease with Mitsui Engineering and Shipbuilding for a PB3 PowerBuoy that was successfully deployed off the coast of Japan was extended for an additional month, which ended in September. The PowerBuoy has just recently arrived back at the Company’s NJ headquarters, where it will be refurbished and prepared for possible redeployment.

“Our contract with the US Department of Defense Office of Naval Research to design a new mass-spring oscillating PowerBuoy has progressed well, and after multiple extensions for testing improvements the project’s first phase is now completed. Additionally, in order to meet anticipated demand, we are building two new PB3 units that are expected to be available for sale or lease within the next few months.”

OPT has developed PowerBuoy device that harvests the energy of the waves, and can act as both power and communication platform for remote offshore applications.