New York’s East River Gets Tiny Turbines To Tap Tidal Power (1)

New York’s East River is set to become the testing ground for a technology that generates electricity from the tides.

Verdant Power, a New York-based marine energy technology company, is installing three small underwater turbines in the river Thursday that will feed power to Consolidated Edison Inc.’s grid.

“We want to prove we have the basis of a commercial, standard system that can be scaled, ” Verdant Chief Executive Officer John Banigan said in an interview.

Marine energy has been around for years, but its adoption has been stymied by high costs and mechanical issues. Verdant’s system, big ...