Shrewsbury River Severn hydro-electric scheme cancelled due to cash cut
A long awaited hydro-electric scheme for the River Severn in Shrewsbury has been cancelled because of uncertainties over future funding, it was revealed today.
The project, developed by Shrewsbury Hydro Community Interest Company, would have seen an underground water turbine built. The development would have tapped into the strength of the flow of water near the weir at Castlefields in Shrewsbury.
Mark Scutt of Shrewsbury Hydro, said it was "very disappointing" that the project has now been shelved.
Uncertainties about the money raised from the electricity generated led to the collapse of the project because it raised questions about its profitability.
Mr Scutt said he hoped the project could be revived in the future.
He added: "Shrewsbury Hydro Community Interest Company is very grateful to all those who helped put the project together and to all those who have given their support."
The company could not guarantee having the scheme completed by March 9, 2018, which would have seen the amount it was paid for electricity reduced by half.
The delay in starting construction is related to the permissions needed for the company to use the land on which the scheme would have been based.
Mr Scutt said: "A lot of people have put a lot of effort into it and it is a super project but we have to face the reality and there is no point going on and on when we can see we have run out of time."
The group has been working to secure a number of permissions required for the project to go ahead but the prospect of the feed-in tariff being cut by more than half undermines the economic stability of the scheme.
Mr Scutt said: "Planning permission and the environmental permissions for the project were obtained in 2015 and permission was obtained in 2016 for a new fish pass to replace the existing one but it has not been not possible to reach agreement in time to lease the small area of land alongside the weir which is required to build the new fish pass and install the proposed underground water turbine.
"We have run out of time to guarantee we can complete the hydro scheme before our deadline of March 9, 2018, when our Government feed-in tariff rate for electricity generated by hydropower from the River Severn, more than halves which makes the project no longer viable." Mr Scutt said he believes that the scheme could still prosper in the future. He said: "Should the feed-in tariff or some similar scheme to encourage the generation of electricity from renewable sources be reintroduced by the Government in the future, the opportunity will come again.
"A hydroelectric scheme alongside the weir should generate on average between 1.5 and 1.8 million kilowatt hours of electricity a year and save up to 1,000 tons of CO2 emissions going into the atmosphere each year compared to generating the same amount of electricity from a conventional power station." Building the hydro scheme would also give the Environment Agency a new fish pass which should improve fish migration. For now, things remain as they are."
