Allowing 5GW of onshore wind to compete in Contract for Difference auctions in the UK between 2019 and 2025 could benefit consumers by up to £1.6bn, according to a new report by BVG Associates.
The report – ‘The Power of Onshore Wind’ – said onshore costs are projected to fall below government forecasts for the wholesale electricity price from 2023 and so provide a net benefit for UK consumers.
It added that a commitment to five auctions would stimulate supply chain investment and increase the UK content in projects to almost 70%.
The biggest opportunities would be in manufacturing towers and blades, part refurbishment and the development of UK installation teams, the authors said.
Most of the capacity (about 86%) would be built in Scotland, with Wales accounting for 12% and England less than 2%, which would be small-scale projects below 50MW.
Up to 18,000 construction jobs would be supported by the build out, with 8500 positions created once projects are operational, BVG said.
The report, which was sponsored by ScottishPower Renewables, Vattenfall, Innogy and Statkraft, analysed five 1GW CfD auctions starting in 2019 and taking place at 18 month intervals thereafter.
Image: Vattenfall
Onshore CfD ‘would benefit UK’
By EBS