Varsity from Edinburgh to conduct survey on tidal energy in state

KOLKATA: State Power minister Sovandeb Chattopadhyay held a meeting with a team from the University of Edinburgh, giving 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 headed by professor AR Wallace from the university in the office of the West Bengal Power Development Corporation Limited (WBPDCL) on Thursday discussing the scopes and how tidal energy projects in Scottland can be replicated here in the state.

Chattopadhyay said the project may be implemented if it is viable enough. After carrying out a survey, the team will submit a detailed report to the state Power department on how the project can be adopted.

"They will conduct the survey in the Sunderbans to find out whether tidal energy can be developed at a cheaper rate and can be implemented for commercial purposes. If it is found to be successful, small units with a capacity of 50 KW may be set up to produce tidal energy. The University of Edinburg has an expertise in tidal energy," Chattopadhyay said.

He added that the state government has given a huge emphasis on the development of renewable energy. As a part of this campaign, many initiatives have been taken by the power department. It may be mentioned that solar energy is being produced in the state at a large scale.