The UK government is to set out the structure of its fifth Contracts for Difference (CfD) allocation round in December.
The department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has published a draft timetable for the round, the first of its anticipated annual auctions that see renewable energy developers bid for a 15-year government guaranteed strike price to support their projects.
A draft allocation framework, which includes pot structure, delivery years and administrative strike prices, is due out in December.
An application window for developers’ supply chain plans is also expected to open between the 5-12 of that month.
Statutory notices, including the budget, will be published in March 2023 when the application window for bids formally opens.
The application window is expected to close in April with candidates to find out whether they have qualified in May.
From there, alternative timetables are mapped out depending on whether there needs to be a review or non-qualifying bidders decide to appeal.
On the shortest timeline, the auction would be held in June with applicants notified whether they have been successful the same month.
However, under other scenarios, applicants may have to wait until July for the auction and until August or September 2023 to find out if they have secured a CfD.