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Ocean Energy in EUROPE

Wave Power

The map shows annual average wave power in kilowatts per metre of crest width for various European sites. The western seaboard of Europe offers an enormous number of potential sites. The most promising sites are off the UK, Ireland, France, Spain, Portugal and Norway.

There is sufficient energy breaking on the UK shoreline to power the country three times over.  However, it is not practical to recover all of this energy.
The economically recoverable resource for the UK alone has been estimated to be 87TWh per year, or ~25% of current UK demand.

http://www.oceanpd.com/Resource/default.html

Tide amplitude along the northwestern European Atlantic cost

In order to harness tidal energy efficiently, two conditions must be fulfilled: the tidal range must be as great as possible, and there must be a sufficiently large bay or a sufficiently large estuary in which the water can be retained at low or high tide.

The output of a power station that can be realized per kilometre of a barrage is a criterion of the suitability of a site.

The map shows the so-called M2 amplitude as an indication of the tidal range. The only existing tidal power station in France and several sites studied in the British Isles are circled in red.
The output in megawatts that could be achieved per kilometre of a barrage is indicated. The higher this figure, the better the cost-benefit ratio at the given site.

http://www.energie-atlas.ch/me-100.htm

Countries

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Related GENI Resources

Definition Ocean Energy
Current Articles on Renewable Energy Resources and Transmission
National Energy Grid Maps

Links

EUEA (European Ocean Energy Association)
European Wave Energy Thematic Network