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. T ...

business formed to promote construction of a

Severn Barrage The Severn Barrage is any of a range of ideas for building a barrage from the English coast to the Welsh coast over the Severn tidal estuary. Ideas for damming or barraging the Severn estuary (and Bristol Channel) have existed since the 19th ...

between Wales and England.

History

The company was established in 2010 as a

consortium A consortium () 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 achieving a ...

of companies forming a

business. Its founders included engineering and construction companies, intending to promote the

. It was originally named Corlan Hafren, which means ''Severn Group'' in

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...

. it comprises four companies, Arup,

Mott MacDonald The Mott MacDonald Group is a management, engineering and development consultancy headquartered in the United Kingdom. It employs over 19,000 staff in 150 countries. Mott MacDonald is one of the largest employee-owned companies in the world. ...

, 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 includes the London Eye, the treetop walkway in Kew Gardens, the i360 observation tower in Brighton, England an ...

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

Atkins Atkins may refer to: People * Atkins (surname) Places in the United States * Atkins, Arkansas, a city * Atkins, Iowa, a city * Atkins, an unincorporated community in Bossier Parish, Louisiana * Atkins, Nebraska, an unincorporated community * Atk ...

Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...

, accountants

KPMG KPMG is a multinational professional services network, based in London, United Kingdom. As one of the Big Four accounting firms, along with Ernst & Young (EY), Deloitte, and PwC. KPMG is a network of firms in 145 countries with 275,288 emplo ...

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 Te ...

of ''

The Sunday Telegraph ''The Sunday Telegraph'' is a British broadsheet newspaper, first published on 5 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 Tele ...

'' noted in August 2012 that former Conservative environment secretary

John Gummer John Selwyn Gummer, Baron Deben, FRASE (born 26 November 1939) is a British Conservative Party politician, formerly the Member of Parliament (MP) for Suffolk Coastal and Lewisham West, now a member of the House of Lords. He was Chairman of th ...

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 Energy () is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of heat and light. Energy is a conserved quantity—the law of conservation of ener ...

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

from

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

Weston-super-Mare Weston-super-Mare ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the North Somerset unitary district, in the county of Somerset, England. It lies by the Bristol Channel south-west of Bristol between Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. Its population ...

and in 2011 it presented them to the

Department of Energy and Climate Change The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) was a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of the government of the United Kingdom created on 3 October 2008, by Prime Minister Gordon Brown to take over some of the ...

. Former shadow Welsh Secretary

Peter Hain Peter Gerald Hain, Baron Hain, (born 16 February 1950), is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 2005 to 2007, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2007 to 2008 and twice as Secretary of State ...

and company representatives met with Prime Minister

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. Until 2015, he led the first coalition government in the UK s ...

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 (VC) is a form of private equity financing provided by firms or funds to startup, early-stage, and emerging companies, that have been deemed to have high growth potential or that have demonstrated high growth in terms of number ...

s and

pension fund A pension fund, also known as a superannuation fund in some countries, is any program, fund, or scheme which provides pension, retirement income. The U.S. Government's Social Security Trust Fund, which oversees $2.57 trillion in assets, is the ...

s. It had sought funding from

sovereign wealth fund A sovereign wealth fund (SWF), or sovereign investment fund, is a state-owned investment fund that invests in real and financial assets such as stocks, Bond (finance), bonds, real estate, precious metals, or in alternative investments such as ...

s, 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