Anglesey Council has welcomed the UK Government’s plans to invest £20 million per year into Tidal Stream electricity as part of its renewable energy auction scheme.

The recent announcement forms part of the fourth allocation round of the Contracts for Difference (CfD) Scheme, which is due to open in December.

In terms of Anglesey’s Energy Island ambitions, Menter Môn’s Morlais project already manages a 35 km2 area of seabed off the coast of Holy Island, and has the potential to establish Ynys Môn as a renowned location for tidal stream energy. The project is currently awaiting consent from the Welsh Minister for Climate Change and Natural Resources Wales.

With £20 million per year now ring-fenced for Tidal Stream projects, Anglesey’s Economy and Major Projects portfolio holder, Councillor Carwyn Jones hopes the new funding can help deliver the Morlais project:

“This is very exciting news for Menter Mon’s Morlais project, which is eagerly awaiting a decision on consent from the Welsh Ministers.”

He added, “The implementation of the Morlais project would generate up to 240MW of electricity by a series of tidal turbines located in the sea off South Stack, making it one of the largest tidal stream energy sites in the world. This would be good news in terms of the creation of local job and supply chain opportunities as well as securing local benefits that would arise during the projects construction and operation stages.”

The CfD scheme is the UK Government’s primary method of encouraging investment in low-carbon electricity, which would to power homes and businesses with affordable, clean and secure electricity by 2035.

The scheme has helped to deliver new investment and reductions in the costs of capital for some renewable technologies, such as helping to reduce the price of offshore wind by 65%.

This fourth round of the CfD Scheme will open on 13 December 2021.

More information can be found here.

Ends 01.12.21