DEN OEVER (nu.nl) - Teamwork Technology, a Dutch company, is planning to install tidal generators on the Afsluitdijk (a 32 kilometer dike that turned a sea-arm into a lake, for more info check Wikipedia). Although the tidal flow is only available for a limited time each day in this location, depending on the flow through the sluice gates in the dike, it is among the strongest in the world.

A short experiment with the same generators was conducted in 2005. The new experiment is meant to last for a number of years, to show the system can be used effectively in the long term. While the generators in this experiment will only supply enough energy for a few hundred households, the technology, if installed elsewhere in the Netherlands, could one day provide electricity for over 30,000 households.

Proponents of the technology point out that tidal flow is far more dependable and predictable than wind or solar power. Though as a trade-off the system can only generate tidal energy in certain places, where tidal flow pushes itself through a (relatively) narrow opening.

The full original article in Dutch can be found at nu.nl, Babelfish can provide a translation to English.