Government to pull plug on Severn tidal barrage

Greenwise Staff

5th September 2010

The Coalition Government has reportedly decided not to back the Severn barrage, the world’s biggest tidal energy project.

According to The Guardian, the Government will announce this month its decision not to back the £15 billion to £20 billion tidal energy project, which would represent the UK’s biggest single source of green energy, generating five per cent of the country’s electricity. The newspaper said, instead, ministers are set to recommend further feasibility studies for one of four much smaller tidal projects.

The Severn tidal energy project is a 10-mile long barrage that would stretch from Weston Super-Mare to Cardiff. The project is controversial because of its potential effect on the biodiversity of the Severn Estuary. It has been opposed by environmental campaign group the RSPB, which believes it could destroy huge areas of the estuary marsh and mudflats used by birds. However, it has won the support of business group the CBI, which last year recommended it be part of a number of strategies to meet UK climate change targets and energy needs.

The Government’s decision not to invest any public money into the Severn Barrage is likely to scare off private companies from backing the project because of the cost and uncertainty of getting it through planning. A spokesman for the Severn Tidal Power Group, a consortium comprising Balfour Beatty, Taylor Woodrow, Sir Robert McAlpine and Alstom, told the Guardian it was unlikely that developers would foot the estimated £250 million cost of getting the project to the planning stage because of the risk it would be refused.

Like this story? Please subscribe to our free weekly e-newsletter at the top of the page for more stories like this.