The renewables sector in Britain is calling on the newly elected Labour administration to substantially raise the funding allocated for renewable auctions to achieve its offshore wind energy and decarbonisation goals. The Labour Party, victorious in the recent election, intends to increase the offshore wind capacity from 15 GW to 55 GW by the year 2030.
Tom Glover, the UK Country Chair of RWE, emphasised the necessity of increasing the auction budget to achieve these objectives. At present, developers can compete for government-supported price assurances through Contracts for Difference (CfDs). The budget for the sixth CfD auction this year is set at 1 billion pounds, with 800 million pounds specifically allocated for offshore wind projects. Nick Hibberd from Renewable UK proposed increasing this amount to 1.5 billion pounds to stimulate investment and reduce family expenses.
The last auction held in 2023 failed to attract offshore wind projects since there were not enough incentives offered. This lack of incentives has impeded the development of the former Conservative government’s aim of achieving 50 GW of offshore wind power by 2030.
Ashutosh Padelkar from Aurora Consultancy recommended doubling the offshore wind auction funds to 1.65-1.95 billion pounds to support eligible projects.
