Govt likely to join hands with Edinburgh University on tidal power prospects in Bengal
Kolkata: Bengal government may soon tie up with the University of Edinburgh for the development of tidal energy in the state.
The state Power department is keen on the development of a tidal energy project in the state. A survey is being conducted in the Sunderbans area to examine the feasibility of the project in the state.
It has been learnt that the survey report would soon be submitted to the Power department.
The University of Edinburgh, which has the expertise to develop tidal projects, will help the state government in this regard.
They would share their knowledge and expertise to provide the state government technical support to set up a tidal energy project here in the state.
Tidal power is a form of hydropower that converts the energy obtained from tides into useful forms of power, mainly electricity. It is a renewable form of energy, like solar and wind. The generation and use of tidal power are non-polluting activities.
In the last month, state Power minister Sovandeb Chattopadhyay held a meeting with a team from the University of Edinburgh in this regard, where he gave his consent to carry out a survey in the state to examine how far a tidal energy project would be successful here. Chattopadhyay held the meeting with professor A R Wallace from the university.
Scotland has been successfully running tidal projects to produce energy. The experts from the foreign university will examine the scopes here in the state. Sunderbans have been selected as the place where a detailed study would be carried out.
After conducting the feasibility study in the Sunderbans, the university experts will enable investment in a pilot project for the generation of tidal energy.
Small units with a capacity of 50 KW will be set up in some places on a pilot basis.
Experiments will be done to see how tidal energy can be developed at a cheaper rate and can be implemented for commercial purposes.
West Bengal Power Development Corporation Limited (WBPDCL) is exploring various options on how tidal energy projects of Scotland can be replicated here in the state.
After carrying out a survey, the team will submit a detailed report to the state Power department on how the project can be adopted. The project may be implemented if it is found to be viable enough.
Source: millenniumpost.in
