Tidal stream power station

E.ON and Lunar Energy are to develop a major underwater tidal stream power project off the coast of Pembrokeshire.

The two companies, which in March announced their intention to build a commercial-scale tidal energy stream plant, have now submitted a scoping report to the Department of Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (DBERR) and other key stakeholders.This is the first step towards gaining consent to take the project forward.

The pioneering project will use tidal streams - fast-moving currents created by rising and falling tides - to turn an array of large turbines situated on the sea floor.  If given the go ahead, the multi-million pound scheme would be capable of generating enough electricity to power up to 5,000 homes.

'The waters off the coast of Wales have some of the greatest potential for marine-generated energy in Europe and this project will help us to harness the power of the tides and turn that potential into the clean, renewable energy we need to help fight the effects of climate change' said Amaan Lafayette, marine development manager at E.ON UK.