Competitors.

Fossil fuel, Coal, oil and gas are called "fossil fuels" because they have been formed from the organic remains of prehistoric plants and animals. Coal is crushed to a fine dust and burnt.Oil and gas can be burnt directly

Solar power, We've used the Sun for drying clothes and food for thousands of years, but only recently have we been able to use it for generating power.Just the tiny fraction of the Sun's energy that hits the Earth (around a hundredth of a millionth of a percent) is enough to meet all our power needs many times over. Solar cells, Solar Water heating, Solar Furnaces.

Wind power.

The Sun heats our atmosphere unevenly, so some patches become warmer than others.These warm patches of air rise, other air blows in to replace them - and we feel a wind blowing.We can use the energy in the wind by building a tall tower, with a large propellor on the top.The wind blows the propellor round, which turns a generator to produce electricity.

Tidal power, the tide moves a huge amount of water twice each day, and harnessing it could provide a great deal of energy - around 20% of Britain's needs.Although the energy supply is reliable and plentiful, converting it into useful electrical power is not easy.

Hydroelectric power, We have used running water as an energy source for thousands of years, mainly to grind corn. Nowadays there are many hydro-electric power stations, providing around 20% of the world's electricity.The name comes from "hydro", the Greek word for water

Pumped storage, Pumped storage reservoirs aren't really a means ofgenerating electrical power. They're a way of storingenergy so that we can release it quickly when we need it.Demand for electrical power changes throughout the day

Wave power, Pumped storage reservoirs aren't really a means ofgenerating electrical power. They're a way of storingenergy so that we can release it quickly when we need it.Demand for electrical power changes throughout the day

Geothermal power, Hot rocks underground heat water to produce steam.We drill holes down to the hot region, steam comes up, is purified and used to drive turbines, which drive electric generators.There may be natural "groundwater" in the hot rocks anyway, or we may need to drill more holes and pump water down to them.

Biofuels Hot rocks underground heat water to produce steam.
We drill holes down to the hot region, steam comes up, is purified and used to drive turbines, which drive electric generators.There may be natural "groundwater" in the hot rocks anyway, or we may need to drill more holes and pump water down to them.