New UK tidal energy capacity – What we know so far

Inyanga Marine Energy Group’s HydroWing Tidal Energy Projects has secured a contract for an additional 10 MW of capacity in the UK government’s Contracts for Difference (CfD) Allocation Round 7 (AR7) for what will, once fully developed, become the world’s largest tidal energy project.

Of note, the UK government awarded a record 14.7 GW of renewable energy capacity as part of its largest CfD round ever in capacity, with tidal stream securing 20.9 MW across four projects.

One of the winners is HydroWing Tidal Energy Projects with the award of a further 10 MW for its Ynni’r Lleuad Project at Morlais in Wales, building on the 20 MW already secured through earlier rounds of CfD, which are under development.

The first HydroWing device is scheduled for deployment at Morlais in 2027 as part of Phase 1A.

The Phase 3 project is scheduled for delivery in 2030 and, as the company says, will make the HydroWing Morlais Project the largest tidal energy project in the world. Once completed, the project will deploy 18 1.67 MW HydroWing HW3 tidal energy devices.

“This latest award allows us to focus on economies of scale and drive momentum towards delivering clean and stable power to the grid in Anglesey at an industrial scale,” said Richard Parkinson, CEO of Inyanga Marine Energy Group. “The award enables us to drive costs down while unlocking the investment necessary to make this project a reality. Our team is working extremely hard with our supply chain and investment partners as we ramp up manufacturing and move towards delivery.”

In September 2024, Inyanga Marine Energy Group was awarded 10 MW for its tidal energy project at Morlais through the Allocation Round 6 (AR6) scheme. This doubled the scale of the project to 20 MW, building on the 10 MW awarded in the previous allocation round.

Furthermore, Scotland-based floating tidal stream technology firm Orbital Marine Power was awarded a contract for its 2.4 MW Orbital Marine Eday 5 tidal stream project, increasing the company’s total UK CfD project portfolio to 17 MW.

This will join Orbital’s existing 2 MW O2 unit, said to be the world’s most powerful tidal turbine, which began power generation in 2021 in the waters off the Orkney Islands.

In November 2025, the company signed power purchase agreements with the Canadian province of Nova Scotia that equate to an order for a further six turbines, cumulatively around 15 MW, to be installed in the Bay of Fundy. Between the UK and Canada, Orbital now has an orderbook of 32 MW or thirteen turbines.

Andrew Scott, CEO of Orbital Marine Power, said: “This is welcomed news as we move Orbital and our supply chain into delivery mode, it expands our vision and increases the opportunities around our business while we demonstrate the important role tidal stream can play in energy systems of the future with its reliable, predictable clean energy.”

The other two winners are Môr Energy Limited, a QED Naval Ltd subsidiary company, for its 5.5 MW Mor Energy GO3 Phase2 tidal stream project, which brings the company’s total capacity at Morlais backed by CfD to 10 MW, as well as Tidal Technologies Limited (TTL), which received its first-ever CfD, for its 3 MW Morlais Tidal Tech GR1 W1.1.

TTL said it was planning to deploy its first full-scale 3 MW demonstrator at Morlais in 2027, with a further 27 MW planned as soon as possible.

“This award marks a significant step forward as we move from innovation to full-scale commercial delivery. The Morlais project is an exceptional location with strong tidal resources, an engaged local community, and key grid-connected infrastructure. We’re proud to be contributing to the region’s growing marine energy ecosystem and to the UK’s broader clean energy transition,” TTL said.

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