Amid rising global concerns following Japan’s disastrous 11 March 2011 nuclear catastrophe at TEPCO’s Fukushima Daichi nuclear complex and surging oil prices, renewable energy is receiving increased attention from investors.
The leading candidates are solar and wind energy, but both have problems beyond significant investment costs and the fact that they have yet to generate power at competitive rates with more traditional power sources such as oil, coal and natural gas.
Beyond issues of power storage, a further concern is the fickle nature of their sources – the sun doesn’t always shine, and the wind is hardly a constant factor.
So, among renewable, which potential power source is so reliable that admiralties have been publishing detailed charts of its progressions for more than two centuries?
Tides are generated by the gravitational forces of the moon. Should these be disrupted, then investors, power companies and governments will likely have more immediate concerns than the quarterly bottom line.
Similar to solar power, currently battling between photovoltaic power and parabolic mirror steam-generated turbine driven systems, no industry-wide standard for tidal power has yet emerged, but smart investors will follow the money trail.
That said, Britain is swiftly emerging as the cutting edge country for tidal development.
Proof?
On 17 February at the Anglo-French summit, a memorandum of understanding was…
