UK leads way in tidal energy technology

Despite the British government slashing support for renewable energy in the last few weeks, a new report from Frost & Sullivan finds that the UK is the market leader in the development of tidal energy solutions.

The UK is the frontrunner ‘buoyed by an ideal tidal pattern and a supportive regulatory scenario’, the analysis says. Canada, China and South Korea are also showing steady progress. The United States is one of the top innovators.

"The success of smaller demonstration plants will propel the immediate adoption of tidal stream and tidal barrage technologies," says Technical Insights Research Analyst Lekshmy Ravi. "The deployment of hybrid energy systems consisting of a combination of tidal and offshore wind energy seems probable in the long term."

The news contrasts with recent government action that has seen it abandon its two main policies to tackle carbon emissions, the Green Deal and the Zero Carbon homes plan as well as cutting subsidies on wind farm projects from next year.

In her first major speech last week on climate change, Energy and Climate Change Secretary Amber Rudd set out the Conservative commitment to tackling climate change whilst keeping bills down in order to deliver lasting economic security for hardworking families and businesses.

Speaking to business leaders in London, she said that the global climate change agreement to be finalised in Paris in December must work for business so that the private sector can play its full part in shaping the solutions to climate change through innovation, technology, enterprise and competition.