Feasibility Assessment of Tidal Current Along the Bay of Bengal to Generate Electricity as a Renewable Energy

Electricity is the pinnacle of human civilization. At present, the growing concerns over significant climate change have intensified the importance of use of renewable energy technologies for electricity generation. The interest is primarily due to better energy security, smaller environmental impact and providing a sustainable alternative compared to the conventional energy sources. Solar, wind, biomass, tidal, and wave power are some of the most reliable sources of renewable energy. Ocean approximately holds 2 × 10³ tW of energy and has the largest renewable energy resource on the planet. Various forms constitute ocean energy namely, encompassing tides, ocean circulation, surface waves, salinity and thermal gradients. Ocean tide in particular, associates both potential and kinetic energy. The study is focused on the latter concept that deals with energy due to tidal current. Tidal currents generate kinetic energy that can be extracted by marine energy devices and converted into transmittable electricity form. The study analyzes the extracted tidal currents from numerical model works at several locations in the Bay of Bengal. Based on current magnitudes, directions and available technologies, the most fitted locations were adopted and possible annual generation capacity was estimated. The paper also examines the future prospects of tidal current energy along the Bay of Bengal (BoB) and establishes a constructive approach that could be adopted in future developments.