Energy UK, the industry body representing UK energy companies, has expressed concerns that the upcoming Contracts for Difference (CfD) auction will not be able to deliver the offshore wind expansion required to meet the UK Government's 2030 50GW target. At present, there is around 27GW of offshore wind capacity in operation or in receipt of a CfD contract, and as future offshore wind developments will almost exclusively come through the scheme, forthcoming auctions will need to deliver another 23GW.
However, Energy UK's analysis indicates that the scheme will fall well short of achieving this. The long lead-in times for offshore wind projects mean that the extra capacity will need to come from the next three annual auctions, working out at a record 8GW each round. Yet, the forthcoming (AR5) auction will only bring forward 3.2GW of new capacity, leaving a shortfall of 4.8GW, and meaning that the next round will have even further to catch up.
Energy UK's Deputy Director, Adam Berman, has called on the UK Government to take urgent action to ensure that the country continues to attract crucial international investment. “The stark reality is that without rapid Government intervention, the UK is set to fall short of our clean energy targets. As the 2030 target moves further and further into the distance, it will lead to increased costs and emissions, and risk the UK falling behind in an increasingly competitive international market.”
Developers are facing challenging investment conditions, but the government has not gone far enough in recognizing the effect of higher costs in the forthcoming round. Berman warns that the UK must act quickly to avoid falling behind on the transition to clean energy, which risks increased costs and emissions in the future.
