The developer of the planned Perpetuus Tidal Energy Centre off the Isle of Wight has slammed the BEIS decision to remove the minima for marine from its Contracts for Difference regime.
Removing the up to 100MW ring-fence for wave and tidal stream from the CfD second round kicking off in April means the sector will have to compete head on with other Pot 2 technologies such as offshore wind.
Perpetuus Energy project director Mark Francis said the UK government’s decision not to provide wave and tidal stream with the minima has “serious implications” for the industry.
“Tidal technologies cannot currently compete on price with more mature renewable energy sectors like offshore wind where the majority of early stage development risks have already been mitigated,” he added.
As reported in today’s subscription-only newsletter reNEWS, Perpetuus Energy has allocated berths to tidal players to install up to 30MW of capacity at the consented site off St Catherine’s Point.
BEIS said it ditched the minima due to marine’s high costs. “Reserving a proportion of the budget for these technologies, at the expense of other potentially less expensive technologies in Pot 2, does not represent good value for money for consumers,” it said.
PTEC said its project would enable industry wide cost reduction but requires a long-term policy framework in place.
“We look forward to working with the government and industry colleagues to ensure that more nascent technologies like ours are supported to ensure the UK maintains its position as global lead in this sector,” added Francis.
Image: PTEC (Perpetuus Energy)
