FRIENDS of the Earth prefers tidal lagoons, with a position paper from the group arguing these could generate 24 Terawatt hours per year of electricity with average output of 2,750MW, compared with 17-19 Twh/year and 1,950-2,170MW quoted for a barrage.
Also, the largest lagoons could avoid 6.5million tonnes of annual carbon emissions, compared with up to 5.1million tonnes of CO for a barrage, and lagoons could generate electricity at less than half the cost.
Severn Tidal Power Group is a potential provider of the construction muscle needed to turn the project into concrete reality. Formed 20 years ago, STPG comprises major construction companies Balfour Beatty, Sir Robert McAlpine, ALSTOM Hydro, Rolls-Royce Power Engineering, Taylor Woodrow Construction and Tarmac Construction.
John Denman, spokesman for the group, makes the key point that STPG does not “own” the barrage.
“The group formed in the early-1980s and has done a vast amount of work (on the Severn Barrage) and has been lobbying the Government in the last two to three years to get to the stage we now have,” he says.
“The group is made up of construction and engineering companies who hope that, at some stage, they will be involved, but we are quite a long way from it going ahead.”
Denham points out that, of the three proposed barrage locations, STPG prefers the largest, between Weston Super Mare and Minehead.
“This is much larger than any of the others and would cost more to build. But it will generate significantly more power than either of the other locations and it would also prevent about one-third of Somerset being flooded when sea levels rise about two metres.”