Tidal power generation has been slow to get up and running.
There are several reasons for that. Mainly it has been one of cost because it is a lot more difficult to work on and especially under the water.
But as more and more ideas are tried and put into use, these problems will be over come and the tremendous resouce of the ocean currents will be tapped.
Here are some facts about the current state of tidal power generation.
Tidal Power Facts
- Not all seashores are suitable for tidal power exploitation. For a place to be suitable for a Tidal Energy installation it should have tidal range of more than 7 meters.
- Tidal power can be captured for a maximum of a 10 hours cycle per day.
- The tidal barrage technology has the disadvantage of affecting the surrounding eco-system and wildlife in the area of the barrage.
- The cost of building a Tidal powered electricity station is high and varies from 1.3million USD per MW to 1.8million USD per MW depending on the location and technology used. This high cost is one of the prohibitive factors of the expansion of tidal power.
- Tidal power installations can provide additional or side benefits to the area of their installation. Such side benefits can be bridges and roads that can be built over the tidal power installations. This was the case in the La Rance installation where a road was built running over the tidal power plant.
- Tidal energy can be considered as a consistent and predictable source, since the tides occur twice a day at consistent pattern.
Get more tidal facts at the source article.
