£1bn Tidal Power Project
Published on by Water Network Research, Official research team of The Water Network in Business
Prudential Is Poised to Become the Key Investor In a £1bn Tidal Power Station, Securing the Future of the Infrastructure Project
Prudential is poised to become the key investor in a £1bn tidal power station, securing the future of the infrastructure project.
The FTSE 100 insurer, through its investment arm M&G, is to inject up to £100m in the Swansea Bay Tidal power station. The insurer will be the cornerstone investor in the project, which is scheduled to open in 2018. The backing from Prudential means the project is now likely to get the go ahead.
The looming investment, which could be announced as soon as tomorrow, will be seen as a major milestone for Prudential, as it is thought to be its first direct investment in renewable energy.
It comes less than a year after the Prudential committed, along with five other British insurers, to invest £25bn into UK infrastructure projects over five years.
Tidjane Thiam, chief executive, has been particularly vocal on the need for British insurers to back major infrastructure projects, particularly during the Solvency II negotiations, where he successfully lobbied for such projects to be permitted in order to allow insurers to meet their long-term obligations.
Planning for the Welsh power station was formally accepted for examination in March 2014, with a recommendation due to be referred to Ed Davey, the Energy Secretary, early next year.
The project is being developed by Tidal Lagoon Power.
The Telegraph reported a month ago thatKeith Clarke, the former WS Atkins chief, is to join the project as non-executive chairman.
The proposed green energy scheme involves building a six-mile horseshoe shaped sea wall in Swansea Bay, creating a lagoon that fills up and depletes with the tide, driving power turbines.
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