BHA Latest News: NESO Arup Tidal Range Report

This article is an excerpt from the BHA Latest News that was released on November 7th 2025. To read more articles like this, become a member today.

A long-awaited official report on the network impacts of delivering tidal range energy has been criticised for relying on flawed assumptions and outdated modelling. The Tidal Range Alliance (TRA), coordinated by the British Hydropower Association, says the study fails to reflect the proven capability of the technology and its potential contribution to the UK’s net zero transition. 

The report, produced by the National Energy System Operator (NESO) and Arup, was published this month. While it acknowledges that tidal range could lower wholesale electricity prices and identifies the Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model as a cost-effective funding route, the TRA says its conclusions are undermined by unrealistic modelling choices. 

According to the TRA, the analysis assumes offshore lagoons instead of more viable coastal or estuarine schemes, models only 700 MW nodes rather than realistic 2–3 GW projects and is based on a hydrogen-heavy pathway that does not align with current UK electrification policy. 

Unlike Arup’s earlier study for the Severn Estuary Commission, which confirmed the technical and economic viability of tidal range projects and identified over 60 per cent UK supply-chain content, the new report overlooks the substantial regional and industrial benefits of tidal generation. These include flood defence, habitat creation, regeneration, and the delivery of predictable, dispatchable power to complement wind and solar. 

The TRA has urged the Government to establish a tidal range task force to build on this regional work and ensure future assessments are based on up-to-date evidence. 

As an island nation with one of the world’s largest tidal ranges, the UK has an untapped strategic resource capable of providing reliable, low-carbon power for more than a century. The Alliance argues that the time to act is now.