Hafren Power (formerly Corlan Hafren) was a

tidal energy Tidal power or tidal energy is harnessed by converting energy from tides into useful forms of power, mainly electricity using various methods. Although not yet widely used, tidal energy has the potential for future electricity generation. Ti ...

business formed to promote construction of a Severn Barrage between Wales and England.

History

The company was established in 2010 as a

consortium A consortium (plural: consortia) is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments (or any combination of these entities) with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for ...

of companies forming a

business. Its founders included engineering and construction companies, intending to promote the Severn Barrage. It was originally named Corlan Hafren, which means ''Severn Group'' in

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

. it comprises four companies, Arup,

Mott MacDonald The Mott MacDonald Group is a consultancy headquartered in the United Kingdom. It employs 16,000 staff in 150 countries. Mott MacDonald is one of the largest employee-owned companies in the world. It was established in 1989 by the merger of M ...

, HalcrowThe Severn Barrage, Regional Vision
October 2012, Corlan Hafren and architects

Marks Barfield Marks Barfield Architects is a London-based architectural firm founded by husband and wife David Marks and Julia Barfield. Their work has included the London Eye, the treetop walkway in Kew Gardens, the i360 observation tower in Brighton, Englan ...

. Halcrow is lead company. Associated companies and persons involved in the project include

Atkins Atkins may refer to: Places in the United States * Atkins, Arkansas, a city * Atkins, Iowa, a city * Atkins, Louisiana, an unincorporated community * Atkins, Nebraska, an unincorporated community * Atkins, Virginia, a census-designated place * ...

, Rolls-Royce, accountants

KPMG KPMG International Limited (or simply KPMG) is a multinational professional services network, and one of the Big Four accounting organizations. Headquartered in Amstelveen, Netherlands, although incorporated in London, England, KPMG is a net ...

and Roger Falconer. Journalist

Christopher Booker Christopher John Penrice Booker (7 October 1937 – 3 July 2019) was an English journalist and author. He was a founder and first editor of the satirical magazine '' Private Eye'' in 1961. From 1990 onward he was a columnist for ''The Sunday T ...

of ''

The Sunday Telegraph ''The Sunday Telegraph'' is a British broadsheet newspaper, founded in February 1961 and published by the Telegraph Media Group, a division of Press Holdings. It is the sister paper of ''The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', kn ...

'' noted in August 2012 that former Conservative environment secretary John Gummer is a former director of the company. one sixth of shares were held by Sancroft International, which is owned by the Gummer family. The House of Commons

Energy and Climate Change Select Committee The Energy and Climate Change Select Committee was a Parliamentary select committees of the United Kingdom, select committee of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom that came into ex ...

examined Hafren Power's proposal in 2013, coming to the conclusion: In 2013 and 2014 several executives and the CEO resigned. Shortly after, Wales Online reported Hafren Power as defunct.

Severn Barrage

In 2010 the company revived proposals for the Severn Barrage from

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

to Weston-super-Mare and in 2011 it presented them to the Department of Energy and Climate Change. Former shadow Welsh Secretary Peter Hain and company representatives met with Prime Minister

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...

in July 2012 to promote the project. The company said that the project will not require public funding and expected to attract investment from

venture capital firm Venture capital (often abbreviated as VC) is a form of private equity financing that is provided by venture capital firms or funds to startups, early-stage, and emerging companies that have been deemed to have high growth potential or which hav ...

s and

pension fund A pension fund, also known as a superannuation fund in some countries, is any plan, fund, or scheme which provides retirement income. Pension funds typically have large amounts of money to invest and are the major investors in listed and priva ...

s. It had sought funding from sovereign wealth funds, stating that expressions of interest have been received from such funds and other investors in Kuwait, Qatar, the UK and elsewhere. Hafren Power stated the scheme would require £25 billion of capital investment, and estimated power costs were about £100 per MWh for the first 30 years, and £20 per MWh thereafter.

References

{{Reflist, 25em Tidal power companies of the United Kingdom British companies established in 2010 Energy companies established in 2010 Renewable resource companies established in 2010 2010 establishments in England