Scottish renewable energy projects with a total capacity of almost 2GW have won contracts in today’s Allocation Round 6 (AR6) of the Contracts for Difference (CfD) auction.
A total of 37 Scottish projects were awarded CfDs.
They include the 400MW Green Volt floating wind project, two fixed offshore wind developments off Scotland’s east coast plus onshore wind, solar and tidal stream schemes.
The project will add to the £10bn of economic benefits delivered by renewables in Scotland each year.
Scottish Renewables chief executive Claire Mack (pictured) said: “Today’s results are positive for Scotland as they enable projects coming forward across a number of key renewable technologies.
“This auction represents a welcome step in the right direction and largely provides cause for optimism.
“Scotland has an enviable pipeline of offshore wind and potentially world leading sites in floating wind.
“The award of a CfD for what is currently the largest floating offshore wind farm across the globe, is therefore very encouraging.
“However, recent auctions have failed to deliver the smaller test and demonstration projects which would be helpful to gain the expertise and learning required to develop floating technology and its supply chain.
“It is also important the UK government understands that today’s auction results mean it is still not on track to achieving its clean power mission by 2030 so further actions will be required.
“With this auction round procuring less than half of the eligible offshore wind capacity we are now at a critical juncture and the UK government must ensure that next year’s auction brings forward the capacity needed to deliver its net-zero targets.
“Seeing more Scottish projects is very welcome but we urge the UK government to work with us to reduce or remove the barriers to deployment, such as the disproportionate charges to connect to the electricity network, that we face in Scotland.
“Today’s results are a strong step in the right direction and we look forward to working collaboratively with industry and government to ensure next year’s auction round will be shaped to deliver as many Scottish projects as possible to support a cheaper, cleaner more resilient energy system.”