Liverpool City Region Combined Authority has stepped forward the design process for a tidal power project in the Mersey by publishing a tender for front end engineering design (FEED) services.
The Mersey Tidal Power Project is a tidal range project that would see a barrage built across the river with a turbine array top generate up to 1GW.
It is a first of a kind project in the UK but similar technology has been used in France and South Korea and it was proposed as part of the Swansea Tidal Lagoon, which previously received development consent.
This project is at the pre-application stage and Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LCRCA) is expected to submit an application for development consent in July 2026. In this stage of development LCRCA is looking for across a combination of project, commercial and technical aspects to enable a full technoeconomic development study of all aspects of the Project. It says the FEED Services contract, at an estimated cost of £4 million, will improve the specification of the scope of works through multi-discipline outline design and prepare for future contracting of the detailed engineering and construction including a full cost estimate.