A joint venture company, to be named Voith Hydro Ocean Current Technologies, which will develop, manufacture and market ocean current technologies, has been formed by two German principals Voith Hydro and RWE Innogy. The total investment guaranteed by both partners over the next few years is in the region $38.3 million. Voith will be the main shareholder with an 80% stake, the remaining 20% being taken by RWE.

"We are absolutely convinced: ocean current power stations, and hence renewable energy from the seas, will be an important building block within the energy mix of the future. The cooperation of two partners of such a high caliber is a milestone in the development and the marketing of this young technology," said Dr. Hubert Lienhard, CEO of Voith AG. "Our common goal is to make ocean current technology competitive as quickly as possible. This is why the close partnership between project developer and plant operator is of special importance to us."

Dr. Fritz Vahrenholt, Chairman of the Board of RWE Innogy, is equally convinced of the potential of ocean current technology: "This form of renewable power generation has a significant advantage: ocean currents flow continuously and can therefore be predicted with maximum accuracy. As a result, the volume of electricity fed into the grid can be forecast much more precisely than that of any other renewable energy carrier. It is therefore imperative that its potential is tapped. With Voith Hydro's experience in this field, we now have a very strong team going forward."