Site selection of Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) plants for Barbados

Tropical climates provide ideal year-round marine thermal gradients that meet the requirements for the oper-ation of commercial Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) plants. This study assesses Barbados' OTEC resources and viability at several locations around the island. The island's coastline was divided into four quadrants and four proposed plant locations were selected within each quadrant based on the shortest distance to the coast. These locations were ranked via a multi-criteria decision analysis using the AHP-TOPSIS methodology. The results of the analysis ranked east coast plant locations highest, with the north, south and west coasts following in that order. The results of this study can guide OTEC development as well as marine planning and investment on the island.