A floating power plant

It somehow resembles a whale. Nine meters long and three meters wide, the Power Buoy by Fritz Mondl elegantly rests in the waters of the Danube River in the Wachau region of Lower Austria and is not diverted by the current.
Quite the contrary, the current is its lifeblood and produces clean energy in amounts, depending on current, up to 100,000 kWh/year.

The principle is as simple as it is ingenious: the current turns a rotor that in turn drives a generator. This constitutes power generation that conserves the environment and the landscape. The Power Buoy requires no dam, hence sustaining the landscape; fish are protected; there is no danger for water sport fans or swimmers, nor for ships; and even flood waters do not prove to be a serious danger. All that holds the Power Buoy in the water is an anchor rod bored into the ground. Thirty households are already being supplied with clean energy by this wonderful device.

The idea of hydroelectric power actually emanates from antiquity, when water wheels were used to harness the kinetic energy of flowing rivers.
The Power Buoy is an advancement that, in combination with modern technology, makes ecological and economic sense.

By the end of 2010 the next generation of the Power Buoy was developed, a larger model with 250% more energy harvest.

More information under www.aqualibre.at