One of Guernsey’s most highly regarded environmentalists was giving a talk on renewable energy to the Channel Islands Group of Professional Engineers and said that the key issue for investing in renewables was when to do it.

Too soon, and there’s no proven technology to put money into; too late and you’ve missed the boat. The problem with that analysis for most islanders is that it highlights the risk – what if you back the wrong type of turbine? – and whose cash are we talking about anyway?

Guernsey Electricity Ltd’s main objective is to provide a secure, reliable, efficient and safe supply of power because that is essential for the local economy to continue to thrive. It is not in business to take a punt on the next big thing in renewables.

To date, it has put £250,000 into Marine Current Turbines but that was more to keep abreast of developments than in any expectation of being at the cutting edge of generation. As it happens, MCT’s experimental 1.2MW tidal energy turbine has not long been issued with a statement of conformity by a classification agency, making it the largest and most powerful such plant.

However, its output is rather less than the peak demand in Alderney and, with Guernsey’s maximum demand running at in excess of 80MW, that indicates how far the technology has to go before it is commercially viable.

Alderney, however, appears to have embraced the ‘have a flutter’ approach enthusiastically. By its States giving exclusive rights over 50% of its waters to Alderney Renewable Energy, that company is sitting on a valuable and presumably saleable resource when someone finally starts making tidal power a commercial reality.

Given the costs – and the further expense of cable links to France and/or the UK – that will be one of the energy majors, further reinforcing ARE’s role as a middleman.

In short, for all the Bailiwick’s natural resources in terms of tides and wind there is no prospect of it being harnessed in the short term, especially while the electricity so produced remains more expensive.

But even when the time is right, the costs involved mean any investment will inevitably come from outside these islands.