Swansea and Cardiff Tidal Lagoon – A Progress Report

Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon was awarded a Development Consent Order in 2015 and is currently being prepared for construction. The consented, £1.3bn, 320MW Swansea pathfinder project will act as a blueprint for a programme of larger tidal infrastructure to generate renewable electricity at a scale and low cost never seen before. British-made turbine and generator technology and engineering expertise will be at the heart of the project.

The Swansea Bay project, capable of meeting the annual electricity requirement of 90% of the homes in Swansea Bay was planned as a test bed for the technology. Development of Cardiff Tidal Lagoon began in 2013; this c.£8bn lagoon would be considerably larger than the one planned for Swansea Bay, with a seawall approximately double the length of Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon but capable of generating around ten times the power. At c.3,000MW potential installed capacity, Cardiff Tidal Lagoon would be capable of generating enough electricity to power the equivalent to every home in Wales. The Cardiff project is currently in design phase, targeting a 2019 planning application, following extensive consultation with the local community and other stakeholders.

The Swansea Bay and Cardiff Tidal Lagoons offer huge potential for Wales and the UK. The green light from Government will give first-mover advantage in a new global industry, capable of scaling to sustain tens of thousands of skilled manufacturing and construction jobs – potentially 71,000 jobs will be sustained at the fleet’s peak construction. In the short-term, the company's commitment to spending locally means that we’ll see swift investment in three new Welsh manufacturing facilities, one for machining and pre-assembly of turbines, one for heavy fabrication of steel components and one for pre-cast of concrete components. Longer-term, there is the potential export market for British-made turbines, generators, and technology and engineering expertise, valued in the tens of billions.

It all begins here in Wales, with Swansea Bay being the home to this new global industry that offers significant export potential for our steel, manufacturing and engineering supply chain.

Mark Shorrock, CEO for Tidal Lagoon Power, will give an update on the projects and the opportunities.

Networking

A light buffet, refreshments and an opportunity for networking will be provided after the session.

Booking

Attendance at this event is free, but booking is required. Places will be allocated on a first come basis.