Technology: Introduction
The paradigm for tidal power generation has been the tidal barrage. Although it has been in use for more than 1000 years, the tidal barrage is unsuitable for broad-scale commercial use because of environmental and economic drawbacks due, primarily, to its shoreline location (see pages 3-4). Offshore tidal power generation utilizes an offshore impoundment structure built of rubble mound construction materials (loose rock, sand, and gravel) sited in a shallow tidal flat with a large tidal range. Placing the impoundment structure offshore resolves the environmental and economic problems of the tidal barrage and reintroduces the vast potential of the oceans’ tides to the array of generation choices at the dawn of an era in which renewable source power is evolving from a marginal to a mainstream technology choice. Offshore tidal power generators use familiar and reliable low-head hydroelectric generating equipment, conventional marine construction techniques, and standard power transmission methods. Three projects (Swansea Bay 30 MW, Fifoots Point 30 MW, and North Wales 432 MW) are in development in Wales where tidal ranges are high, renewable source power is a strong public policy priority, and the electricity marketplace gives it a competitive edge.


Introduction
Background
History of Tidal Power
Tidal Lagoons
The Tidal Resource
Conclusions

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