UK energy department DESNZ is targeting early August to launch the Allocation Round 7 Contracts for Difference auction.
A “prospective” commencement date of 7 August has been identified by officials, with an applications window running until 27 August, according to a government notice.
A DESNZ spokesperson told reNEWS: “The indicative timeline confirms that we intend to open the round on 7 August 2025.
“We expect the key milestones set out in the timeline to be those that we follow throughout AR7, but any changes will be communicated via the CfD website.”
Provisional delivery years have also been set for various renewables technologies eligible to compete in the auction, including 2028-29 and 2029-30 for fixed and floating offshore wind, 2027-28 and 2028-29 for onshore and remote islands wind, and 2027-28 and 2028-29 for solar.
Final confirmation of the delivery years will be provided ahead of the round’s opening, DESNZ stated.
If adopted, the AR7 applications timeline could potentially make publication of the results touch and go before the end of 2025 based on last year’s AR6 tender which ran for just over five months between March and September.
The government has yet to outline the core parameters for the next auction, which is set to be a crucial round for delivering the renewables capacity needed to achieve the UK’s Clean Power 2030 agenda.
Several reforms are under consideration for this year’s tender, including a measure to allow fixed-bottom offshore wind projects that have not received planning consent to enter the race.
London is also considering regulations to allow for a Contract Budget Notice to be published later in the allocation round process, rather than the current requirement for 10 days before the application window opens.
(Picture: UK energy secretary Ed Miliband)