The UK government should introduce an additional emergency Contract for Difference (CfD) auction in the next six months and then regular six monthly CfD tenders as part of the upcoming Energy Security Strategy, according to the Association for Renewable Energy and Clean Technology (REA).
The six monthly auctions should have a clear rolling timetable and sufficient budget and simplified CfD contract to support smaller projects, REA said.
The call is part of several proposals made by REA ahead of the Energy Security Strategy announcement.
REA also said the strategy should address transmission and distribution grid capacity constraints to allow renewable projects to connect to the network faster.
It also said the government needs to move faster to establish a hydrogen production route to market, remove restrictions from the Green Gas Support Scheme, and initiate an industrial fuel switching tariff to enable organisations to switch away from relying on fossil gas.
“If the Energy Security Strategy can tackle these fundamental issues in the system, the UK can rapidly move away from fossil fuels and deliver an energy system that is ‘independent, secure and stable’,” REA said.
REA chief executive Nina Skorupska (pictured) said: “The government must be bold with their Energy Security Strategy.
“This is a crucial moment – over the coming months the UK must rapidly move away from fossil fuels onto renewables otherwise we could continue to suffer from volatile energy prices.
“Our sector is clear: we stand ready for a mass rollout of small, medium and large-scale renewable developments if the Government are proactive in removing barriers and providing other catalysts.
“We could more than double the number of planned projects in the next two years and the number of jobs created would also increase by around two-thirds – the government must seize these immense opportunities.
“If the Energy Security Strategy can tackle the fundamental issues in the system, our sector will deliver an energy system that is independent, secure and stable.”