Eco2 – committed to the future of renewable energy

Hunt for new forms of energy turns to seabed

An underwater tidal version of a wind farm is to be developed with the help of a £500,000 grant from the Welsh Assembly.

25.07.10

This new form of green energy could over decades provide sustainable power to light up more than two million homes.

The grant, which is expected to be the first in a series of investments by the Welsh Assembly, will be made to Cardiff based Tidal Energy [Ltd]. The money will help to develop a prototype turbine powered by the force of the tides.

The devices will be situated on the seabed off Ramsey Sound, Pembrokeshire.

If trials go well, Tidal Energy plans by 2013 to expand the farm to ten times its initial size.

Jane Davidson, Welsh Assembly Minister for the Environment, said: “We think tidal energy offers a massive investment opportunity. It will go a long way to achieving the target of ten per cent of power coming from renewable sources by 2025.”

by Tom McGhie
The Mail on Sunday