The UK government has assigned £310 million to its upcoming Allocation Round 7a (AR7a) Contracts for Difference (CfD) auction, marking a new funding package aimed at accelerating a range of non-offshore wind renewable projects.
According to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), most of the allocation — £295 million — will go to Pot 1, where established technologies such as onshore wind and solar will compete. A further £15 million has been reserved for Pot 2, which supports less established sectors including wave and tidal stream power.
Delivery years for Pot 1 projects have been set for 2027-28 and 2028-29.
The government said at least £160 million within Pot 1 will be reserved for onshore and remote island wind schemes, describing the safeguard as a “hard constraint” that operates as a “ringfenced budget” for these technologies. Solar projects, meanwhile, will be subject to a £295 million maximum allocation. DESNZ said this upper limit is “purely technical” and is intended to “ensure the auction separates the clearing price of solar PV from that of other participating technologies in Pot 1.”
Administrative strike prices have been confirmed at £92/MWh for onshore wind and £75/MWh for solar, both in 2024 prices. The caps were first announced in July.
AR7a will run under its longest schedule to date. A sealed bidding window is slated for 5–9 January, with auction results expected between 6 and 9 February.
Offshore wind technologies — both fixed-bottom and floating — will not take part in AR7a. Instead, they will compete in a separate stream this year with a previously confirmed £1 billion budget.
