Scottish Renewables is calling on the UK government to unlock Scotland’s renewables pipeline, ahead of funding for the upcoming Contracts for Difference (CfD) auction.
In a letter to Claire Coutinho MP, Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net-Zero, Scottish Renewables has urged London to maximise the number of offshore wind projects capable of being successful in winning contracts through this year’s CfD allocation round.
Following the failure of last year’s CfD auction to attract any bids from offshore wind developers, the renewable energy industry expects at least 10GW of offshore wind projects need to be successful in AR6 for the UK to remain on track for its 2030 target.
Scotland is poised to power the UK’s future energy needs and boost the economy with a “world leading” pipeline of offshore wind schemes including the 30GW ScotWind leasing round and the Innovation and Targeted Oil & Gas (INTOG) 5GW leasing round.
To capitalise on the potential from all renewable technologies, Scottish Renewables recommends the UK government sets an AR6 auction budget which maximises the capacity procured across all technologies and adjust reference prices and load factors for all technologies.
This is because accurate reference prices and load factors are critical to maximising the capacity that the auction budget can procure.
It also advises the UK government introduce a ringfenced budget for floating offshore wind and increase the budget ringfenced for tidal stream projects.
Chief executive of Scottish Renewables Claire Mack (pictured) said: “With the UK remaining one of the most gas dependent economies in Europe, underperformance in AR6 will leave UK consumers less energy secure and more exposed to high, volatile gas prices.
“It is therefore essential that the UK government provides a budget for AR6 that aligns with Scotland’s renewable energy ambitions and maximises the number of projects across all technologies that are successful in winning contracts.
“Scottish Renewables looks forward to continuing to work closely with the UK and Scottish governments to drive the collaboration that will achieve our bold decarbonisation targets and deliver cheaper, cleaner power for consumers.”