Minister talks tidal power

“Thorium turns out 300 times the power per pound that uranium does with a waste half life, from the tiny amount left over, of tens of years not tens of thousands of years but of course nuclear bombs can't be made from it.
Also the efficiency is way above uranium & can be modulated being very useful for backing up wind & tidal power.
France has problems with its uranium plants, constituting 70% of the energy supply, way above a sensible limit so, by necessity, must export electricity. Further at the moment France is having to import as some of it's plants are shut due to overheating, being inland & suffering from lack of cooling water, another problem thorium plants won't suffer from being able to modulate & incapable of meltdown.”

“PhilEvs,
There are lots of stuff published about power generating efficiencies. A good one to check out is a Friends of the Earth Cymru paper, http://tinyurl.com/8yxtw2m It's a heavy read at 62 pages, but there's all sorts of information in there.
Finally, wind turbines, check this one out http://tinyurl.com/3mga644”

“@Stork - Please, please give me a source for those efficiencies because they're ridiculous attempts at attributing values. How do you calculate the efficiency of wind energy? Tidal lagoons probably come out favourably because the maths is far, far easier to justify. Gas CHP are also near 60% efficient.

While large-scale hydro electric is possible I do think we stand to lose too much of our countryside if we are to properly embrace it. Tidal power is far less damaging and can yield huge amounts of power if we care to think big enough.”

“Yes Carwyn, we all know about tidal power. How about WAG doing something about it ? There have been private investors trying to build a Severn Barrage, seeking meetings with David Cameron. How about WAG pushing harder for tidal power to be utilised. There are thousands of jobs to be gained and years of work available, and it wouldn't cost the UK government anything to build it.
In the meanwhile for any readers who are interested, approximate power generating efficiencies are as follows. Nuke-50%/60%, onshore windturbines-30%, offshore windturbine-35%, Severn Barrage-26%, Tidal lagoons, surprise, surprise-60% efficient.
If it was up to me, Tidal lagoons would be the way to capture tidal energy. It would still require a large workforce for years of building, and would give us clean energy, that is until the Moon stops orbiting the Earth. Don't forget, there are 3 large nuclear power stations' worth of energy flowing up and down the Bristol Channel twice a day, every day”

“Hydro power is much more reliable, and hopefully cheaper, than wind.

With all the mad suggestions people come up with, here's mine,

Why don't we evacuate a few valley's and built a few very large hydro-electric dams. link them up to a water purification plant and we can have cheap power as well as water to sell to the English. perhaps we could have world class water sports facilities as well, a full dam is perfect for yachting!!”

“Tidal has it's place along side wind. Care must be taken not to harm any sea life though. This proposed barrage mind you is a non-starter. Wales can take pride that never again will we see a filthy coal station built in our country, and thanks to our incompetent MP's in London we can add to that list nuclear as well. How many years have thy been proposing new nuclear plants, talk is all that will ever happen. Lets rejoice in that fact.”

“About time with the dismal failure of wind farms producing a tiny amount of the promised energy.
At least tidal power is reliable, although generation times vary from day to day but is well known to be allowed for.
The max. nuclear power is limited to about 50% as being difficult to modulate, wind power 20% because of it's minute by minute variability but I don't know the limit for tidal power.
The much safer thorium nuclear fuel can be employed in modulating power stations though.”