Weather permitting, the 26-metre, $21 million steel structure called bioWAVE will be lowered to the ocean floor six kilometres west of Port Fairy on Sunday, BioPower Systems chief executive Tim Finnigan said.

“We’re aiming to be in position for deployment on Sunday,” Mr Finnigan said.

“It’s a little bit fluid because we’re trying to manage a lot of different contractors and vessels and (dealing with) the weather, but right now it’s looking like everything will be (ready to deploy) on Sunday, weather permitting.” 

If the swell proves too large on Sunday, Mr Finnigan said they would try to deploy on Monday morning.

He said the heavy-lift ship, which will be accompanied by three other vessels, is expected to anchor about 800 metres offshore from Southern Ocean Mariculture west of Port Fairy on Saturday.

BioPower Systems have co-ordinated with Southern Ocean Mariculture to allow a small window from 4pm until 6pm on Saturday when the public will be permitted on to the abalone farm to get a good look at the bioWAVE from the beach while it’s anchored offshore.

“People will be able to see it very well,” he said.

“(The best viewpoint) is on private land so it’s usually closed off because there’s a business operating there but (Southern Ocean Mariculture) have kindly agreed to open the beach up.”

A boating exclusion zone has been set up around the deployment site, including a 150-metre radius marked by two buoys.

Mr Finnigan said the imminent launch of the wave energy pilot program was “fantastic”.

”Especially with the current attention on climate change and the world leader’s gathering, here we are in a beautiful and quiet part of Australia getting on with (harnessing renewable energy),” he said.

“Everyone in our circles is really excited about it.”

The bioWAVE will feed 250 kilowatts into the grid and will operate for at least 12 months, with continual testing and an independent final assessment. The unit operates by swaying below the ocean surface and is expected only to be visible during the trough of a wave.

The heavy-lift vessel carrying the bioWAVE plant was expected to dock in Portland on Wednesday before heading to Port Fairy.