As a country with enormous potential for both wind power and solar energy, India has been steadily working towards building up the respective technologies to establish their renewable energy reputation. One of the areas they have yet to consider, however, is tidal and wave based energies and India is about to make a change for the better in that department. With plans to have a tidal power station built in the country within the next couple of years, the nation is ready to grab the title of the first Asian nation to host tidal power.
The tidal power plant that is being planned for India is currently expected to provide a capacity of fifty megawatts of renewable energy with the potential to be expanded up to a larger 250 megawatt capacity. The plant is to be built by the Atlantis Resources Corporation, which is a London based renewable energy company, and located in the Gulf of Kutch in the Indian state of Gujarat. Atlantis believes that the plant, while currently expected to reach the 250 megawatt capacity, is capable of attaining a 300 megawatt maximum capacity. They also believe the area might be suitable for offshore wind power at some point in the future.
With the location and specifications decided, the tidal power plant that is to become the first commercial plant in Asia is to be part of a memorandum of understanding that will allow the company to build the plant and sell the electricity. The electricity purchased from the plant is going to be going to the Gujarat Power Corporation under a variety of tariffs that have not yet been fully determined. Currently, Atlantis and the local government are hoping that the plant will be fully operation come 2013.
Though the plant being built in India is the first commercial tidal power plant in Asia, it is not Atlantis Resources’ first bout with the technology. The company is currently working on projects off the coast of Scotland, where it is believed that immense tidal power potential is readily available, and in various locations in Australia. With the Indian venture added to their portfolio, Atlantis has plenty of chances to prove the worth of tidal power.
Given the exciting potential that tidal power holds, it is nice to see India ready to take the plunge and invest is what is one of the more expensive renewable energy ventures in the world. With any luck, however, the leap of faith will prove not only profitable, but beneficial on the green side, and convince neighboring nations to give it a try.
Article by Richard Cooke, appearing courtesy Justmeans.
