UK Energy Secretary Grant Shapps (pictured) has outlined the pot structure, administrative strike prices and delivery years for the Contracts for Difference Allocation Round 5.
The auction is set be open in March 2023 and will feature two separate pots comprising a total of 15 technology types.
Offshore wind will compete against onshore wind, remote island wind and solar in pot one, which will have delivery dates from 2025 to 2026, from 2026 to 2027 and from 2027 to 2028.
This is different to Allocation Round 4 in which offshore wind featured solely in a separate pot.
Elsewhere, floating offshore wind will face off against other technologies in pot two which includes geothermal, tidal stream and wave projects.
These will be expected to come online between 2026 and 2027 and between 2027 and 2028.
The administrative strike prices for offshore wind and floating offshore wind have been reduced to £44/MWh and £116/MWh, respectively, while those for onshore wind and remote island wind have both been set to £53/MWh.
The administrative strike price for solar will be the same as it was for Allocation Round 4 at £47/MWh.
BEIS has also published the draft Allocation Framework for Round 5 which sets out the rules for the auction and the eligibility requirements applicants must satisfy.
A final budget notice containing full details about the auction parameters will be published in March 2023.
RenewableUK chief executive Dan McGrail said it’s vital to maximise investment in renewable technologies that offer highly competitive prices.
He added: “The government and the industry are keen to ensure that billpayers get the maximum benefit from new renewable energy projects. However, we can’t ignore rising commodity and labour costs across the world which are increasing the cost of building all energy infrastructure.
“To avoid the risk of the UK losing out on potential investment in the clean energy supply chain, ministers need to take account of these costs in the final budget they set for the upcoming clean power auctions in March.
“It’s great to see the government consulting on how CfD auctions might be reformed to support wider goals like environmental sustainability and supply chain growth. We have to start this process as soon as possible – that means setting budgets and prices for next year’s CfD auction which enable supply chain investment by taking full account of the soaring costs which developers are facing.”