Severn estuary tidal energy plan back on agenda amid Ukraine crisis

theguardian.com:

A major infrastructure project harnessing the vast tidal power of the Severn estuary is back on the agenda after the UK government said the Russian invasion of Ukraine had highlighted the need to find more secure sources of energy.

An independent commission was launched on Tuesday to explore using the Severn estuary, which has the second largest tidal range in the world, to create energy.

Michael Gove, the UK secretary of state for levelling up, backed the commission, which comes 12 years after the government dashed ambitious plans for a 10-mile energy-generating barrage.

Gove said: “Russia’s invasion has served to heighten concerns about energy security and costs. Sustainable forms of energy cannot come soon enough. The launch of an independent commission on tidal energy for the Severn is very welcome news.”

The commission has been set up by the Western Gateway “powerhouse”, a coalition of politicians, business and public sector leaders and academics covering an area stretching from Swansea to Swindon and straddling the Severn, designed to rival the Northern Powerhouse and Midlands Engine. At its inaugural conference, delegates were told a Severn estuary tidal project could provide up to 7% of the UK’s energy needs.

Huw Thomas, the leader of Cardiff council and one of the leaders of the project said: “We’re becoming painfully aware of the need for greater energy security.”

Thomas acknowledged that concerns over possible damage to an internationally important marsh and mudflat habitat, harming wildlife had blighted previous schemes. In 2010 the UK government said there was no “strategic case” for investing in a barrage and, instead, paved the way for new nuclear power plants.

But Thomas said: “The changing landscape of the