The UK Government has announced the fourth and biggest round of its renewable energy scheme. Round four aims to double the renewable electricity capacity secured in the third round and generate more than the previous three rounds combined.
£265 million ($366 million) per year will be provided to businesses in the fourth round of the scheme.
£200 million ($276 million) will support offshore wind projects helping to meet the commitment of 40GW capacity by 2030.
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£55 million ($76 million) will be made available for supporting emerging renewable technologies. For the first time, £24 million ($33 million) of that is ringfenced for floating offshore projects.
The Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme is open to projects operating in Great Britain and is the Government’s primary method of encouraging investment in low-carbon electricity, according to the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS).
For the first time since 2015, established technologies, including onshore wind and solar, will also be able to bid. The Government is seeking up to 5GW of capacity from these technologies, with a £10 million ($14 million) budget.
Energy Minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan said: “The new plans set out today deliver on the Prime Minister’s Ten Point Plan and will support the next generation of renewable electricity projects needed to power our homes and meet our world-leading climate change targets.”
CfD contracts are allocated through a competitive auction process where the cheapest projects in each technology group are awarded contracts first.
The Government will publish details of the support that will be available for renewable projects, along with levels of electricity generation capacity that are anticipated to be delivered by the fourth CfD round.
The updated guidance is also being published for onshore wind projects in England, to ensure local communities are given a more effective voice on local development.
