High tide coming in for tidal power?

With two thirds of the earth of the world covered by water and abundance as of yet unexploited coast line and prime sites for ocean power, a wave and tidal power bonanza could soon be underway. The ocean’s power is much denser then any other form of energy, therefore harnessing power from the ocean with similar technologies such as wind turbines higher yields can be expected in the long term.

Tidal power has been an idea for many years, but thus was not economically feasible. Now however places such as the United Kingdom and Canada are looking at tidal power systems.

Recently E.ON already the one of largest operator of renewable energy assets in the United Kingdom including large scale wind farms, biomass and hydro facilities announced that it was partnering with Lunar Energy to build one of the world’s largest tidal stream power stations.  The project would provide up to 8 mW of power generation and thus provide power to over 5,000 households. The project would use turbines mounted on the sea floor to take advantage of currents occurring there.  The scheme would be a pioneering effort in the United Kingdom on this scale.  E.ON is partnering with Lunar Energy who developed the technology with Rotech Engineering Limited, the device which is called a Rotech Tidal Turbine and are modular devices which will be grouped together.

For additional information:

http://www.rotech.co.uk/www/engineering/energy.htm

http://www.eon-uk.com/pressRelease.aspx?id=1076

http://www.lunarenergy.co.uk/