China and the European Union are to co-operate in building a US$1.2M tidal energy power station near Zhousan Archipelago, off the coast of Zhejiang province in east China. The station will differ from other tidal power plants because it will not have a dam. Experts with the State Oceanic Administration explained that the generating units of the tidal station will be built in the seabed or will float and will not hinder shipping or cause marine pollution.
China is giving priority to developing new energy from renewable sources like hydro. According to Shi Dinghuan, Director General of the High and New Technology Develop-ment Department of the Ministry of Science and Tech-nology, China is rich in tidal energy with 90% being found off the coastal areas of Zhejiang and Fujian provinces. So far ten tidal power stations have been built nationwide with a total capacity of nearly 20MW.
According to Shi, China has drawn up a series of laws to support the development of renewable energy sources.