We have measured the thermoelectric power of quasi 1-D chain compound, (TaSe 4) 2I, in the temperature range 120–335 K. Below the CDW transition temperature (260 K) the thermopower is observed to be a linear function of reciprocal temperature consistent with semiconducting behaviour. The electron mobility is obtained to be 1.24 times the hole mobility suggesting that the majority carriers of heat and current transport in this compound are electrons. The results are qualitatively very similar to those of TaS 3 system.