28th January
Dear Editor
I Richard of Swansea (letters, 27th Jan) calls renewable energy “the biggest scam in history”, unfairly comparing Swansea Bay Tidal Power Lagoon with Pembroke Power Station, a massive carbon dioxide emitter.
I Richard references Hinkley C nuclear plant: start-up just pushed back to 2026, cost bumped to £23,000,000,000… Almost double the 2008 estimate, which expected it coming online for Christmas 2017. Enough of a scam? Well, now consider that for 35 years we are committed to paying £92.50 per megawatt hour for Hinkley C electricity, when the latest strike price for offshore wind was £39.65 per MWh (current-news.co.uk) and onshore wind, “frozen out” by our politicians for four years, is cheaper still at £34/MWh , with solar PV at £33/MWh (both solarpowerportal.co.uk).
Tidal Lagoons needn’t just be power generators: they can act as huge batteries, storing surplus renewable electricity for later use when demand rises. And, if built out from the shore, they can protect against flooding and surges – ever more likely as carbon dioxide concentrations rise.